A Squib's Revenge
by phantomace13
Summary: Another Wrong-Boy-Who-Lived story with a twist. Harry's brother Richard is the Boy-Who-Lived while Harry is just a plain Squib. But when he goes to Hogwarts, he will show the entire Wizarding World what a Squib can do. Dark/Evil Harry ABANDONED
1. Prologue

**A Squib's Revenge**

**Summary: Yes, a****nother Wrong-Boy-Who-Lived story but this time with a twist. Harry's brother Richard is the Boy-Who-Lived while Harry's magic is sacrificed to save Richard's, making Harry a plain Squib. But when Harry goes to Hogwarts, he will plan to show the entire Wizarding World what a Squib can do. Will contain dark/evil Harry. Inspired in part by Dhulli's story **_**Squib**__**. Rating may change. **_

_**Author's note: I promised myself that I wouldn't fall into the same trap as other fanfiction writers, but unfortunately I have too many ideas flowing through my head. In order to get rid of them, I have decided to post all stories in which I am focusing on. I promise, I will not abandon this story or **__**Scar & Bones**__**. The story that gets the most reviews will be the one I focus on the most as that means that more people are reading it. Please read and review both stories. **_

_**I am unsure of the pairing as of right now so I'll leave it up to you. There are a couple of rules though. Harry's girl **__**will**__** become a Dark Lady, so she must be a good choice. She also must be pureblood or half-blood, NO MUGGLE-BORNS. I would prefer if she came from Slytherin or Ravenclaw but I'll take Gryffindor or Hufflepuff as well. She also cannot be older or younger than Harry by more than two years, so no Tonks or Fleur. Also, please think about whom you want on Harry's side; Draco is a yes, Ron and Hermione are a no. I am also looking for a beta for this story. **_

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><p><em><span>Prologue <span>_

_October 31, 1981 Godric's Hollow_

_The darkest lord in the world, Lord Voldemort, walked down the street of the village of Godric's Hollow. It was cold, windy, and wet, the result a rain that morning. Yet, despite the weather, dozens of children of various ages ran throughout the village, greedy for candy. Voldemort sneered; the foolish muggles, worshiping something they didn't even know existed, never aware that only feet from them, was the one who would lead an army of wizards to oppose, kill, and enslave them. A small child dressed in a pumpkin costume ran up to him. _

_"Nice costume mister!" _

Voldemort turned his head slightly and he saw the child's smile turn into a look of horror when he saw what was beneath the hood of the black cloak he wore. The child ran, back to his mother. Voldemort gripped his wand; with one simple movement he could prevent the boy from ever reaching his mother. It would be easy, easy but unnecessary. It might even prove dangerous. The green flash from the killing curse could alert either his intended victims and warn them or could alert the meddlesome Ministry that dark magic was being performed in a heavily populated muggle neighborhood. As easy and amusing as killing the boy would be, he had more important work to do tonight.

As he continued his journey, Voldemort thought of what had brought him here, to this muggle village. Fifteen months ago, one of his informants, Severus Snape, had been following his greatest adversary, the muggle loving fool Albus Dumbledore. Snape had learned that Dumbledore was going to interview a potential teach at Hogwarts. Preparing to take his role as a spy there, Snape had followed to get hints and ideas for his own interview, as well as check out the competition. What he had found that night was something far more valuable than an position as spy in Hogwarts.

The candidate, a descendant of a famous seer, hadn't shown much talent, until the prophecy. Snape had overheard the woman go into a trancelike state and speak in a strange voice. He was discovered before he had heard the full prophecy, but it was enough. All that concerned Voldemort was that it mentioned a boy who would have the power to defeat him. The only characteristics were that he would be born at the end of July to parents who trice had defied him. It took a couple of weeks but he had eventually discovered which couples who had defied him three times had given birth at the end of July; the Potters and Longbottoms.

The Longbottoms were Aurors and members of Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix. They were also purebloods. The Potters however, had the answer. The father James Potter was also a pureblood but had married a muggle-born, making their children half-bloods, like him. They had also given birth to twins. Twins were rare in the magical world and were the sign of powerful magic, as such; they were destined for great things. The Prewett brothers had proved that, they had killed five of his best Death Eaters before they themselves were killed. Twin half-bloods were a major threat, so it was the obvious choice that the one to destroy him would be one of the Potter children.

When he at last had discovered his targets, he began to peruse them. Voldemort had acted alone, he did not want any of his Death Eaters to get in his way and he didn't trust them fully with this. That and he wanted the pleasure of killing the boys himself. Unfortunately, Dumbledore knew the prophecy as well and knew that such boys would be valuable to him and had hidden the whole family. Months of careful research and looking had led to the discovery that the Potters were using the Fidelius Charm, a spell that hid a location inside a person, only the Secret-Keeper would be able to reveal the Potters location to him.

Once Voldemort had discovered the use of the Fidelius, he began looking for the Secret-Keeper. It was advisable for the Secret-Keeper to be a family member or close friend, so he begun looking there. As the mother was a muggle-born, her only family would be muggles. The parents were dead and the sisters didn't get along well. Her only friends were Alice Longbottom and Stacey Smith, both purebloods, yet Voldemort didn't think it was either of them. That left the father's side. Like his wife's, both parents were dead. His friends were Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. Lupin was a werewolf, so he was out. Black however, was Potter's best friend, best mate at his wedding, godfather of his eldest child, and brother in all but blood, he was the perfect choice.

Voldemort had spent a couple weeks looking for Black when he began to really think. Rumors were that Potter liked to play pranks, could this whole goose-chase be one large prank on him? Black was the perfect Seeker-Keeper, maybe too perfect, Potter had claimed that Black was his Secret-Keeper. But what if he found Black and it was revealed that he wasn't the Secret-Keeper after all, he would have wasted months and work and the true Secret-Keeper would disappear. He then began to think of who would be the most unlikely suspect.

Peter Pettigrew was an average wizard who had surrounded himself with stronger wizards for protection. Unremarkable in his own right, he was the perfect decoy. It had taken him only a matter of weeks to find him. Under the threat of death, Voldemort had managed to persuade the timid man to switch sides and reveal the Potter's location. Now, armed with that information, Voldemort was on his way to remove the only threat to his power fifteen months after it had been born.

Turning onto a new street he reached his destination. He could easily see the house a couple of feet away, the Fidelius broken, though only two knew it. There was no one on the dark street, no one to see him disappear as he entered the warding. The curtains were open so he looked inside to see where his targets were, if was foolish to enter a building and not know where anyone was. There, he could see the black haired father entertaining his two children with his wand, making different colored smoke appear. The mother entered, picked-up her children and disappeared again, most likely upstairs to put them to bed. The man threw his wand on the sofa and stretched, yawning. This would be easier than he thought.

Voldemort withdrew his wand and pointed it at the door, which exploded inwards. James Potter was through the door leading to the living room, he shouted a warning to his wife, telling her to take the children and run. Voldemort blasted him across the room easily; the man had not even gotten his wand. He then moved towards the stairs and climbed up them. One of them creaked, alerting the woman to his position. Upon reaching the top of the landing he turned towards the nursery, which was proudly labeled, how convenient. The door was closed but whether it was locked or not didn't matter, it too was blasted inwards.

The woman stood in the middle of the room, her arms wide as if to shield the boys from his sight. She too had not wand with her. How foolish they had been, thinking that they were safe here, trusting their friends and abandoning their weapons. She begged, she pleaded, asking for him to take her own life instead of her sons'. Annoyed, he blasted her aside like her husband, but not after giving her the choice of living or not. With the last obstacle removed, he turned at last towards the Potter children, the ones said that could defeat him.

They were in separate cribs; one white, the other blue, with their names at the top. He knew their names; Peter had told him and given a description in case something went wrong, which it wouldn't. On the right, in the blue crib, was the youngest. A crying baby with dark red hair like his mother and hazel eyes like his father; Richard Charles Potter. Named for the famous muggle king Richard I, or Richard the Lionheart. The name showcased the family's devotion to Gryffindor House at Hogwarts and the hopes of the boy in becoming a great leader and warrior, like Dumbledore. He was also named for his paternal grandfather, Charles James Potter.

On the left, in the white crib was the eldest son, Harry James Potter. Black hair and green eyes, he was the opposite of his younger brother. To further this difference, the older brother wasn't crying, which a relief was for Voldemort as he hated crying babies, it reminded him too much of his time in the orphanage. He didn't know where they got the name Harry, probably passed along the Potter line like many pureblooded families. The middle name James of course, was another tradition, the eldest son, and also heir, always received his father's first name as his middle.

Now came the problem, which baby to kill first. In all of his months of planning he had never thought once of which child to kill first, he was too focused on finding the Potters to give it any thought. Now that he was here it seemed like a major flaw in planning. He would have to remember this in the future, the best laid plans can come undone with even the smallest detail over looked. The answer was given a few seconds later; the youngest still won't shut up and was starting to give Voldemort a headache. The oldest reminded him too much of himself and he would grant this with a small honor.

Voldemort pointed his wand at the youngest, in his face, which only caused him to cry even louder. He would end this as quickly as possible. He spoke the words of the Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra, and laughed as the sickly green curse flew out of his wand towards the child. Then something unexpected happened. The Killing Curse bounced off of the child. Before Voldemort had time to blink, his own curse hit him and blasted him back. He felt his body being destroyed, his soul being torn as his six Horcruxes fought to keep him alive.

Then, the strain became too much and Voldemort felt his soul tear itself apart. He screamed a terrible scream as what was left of his soul was destroyed, except for one little part. It floated about before feeling the life presence of the twins. It went towards the youngest as he was closer, but the barrier which had protected him from the Killing Curse also stopped it. It then went to the other brother, which was unprotected. The soul fragment touched a spot on the boy's forehead and entered, creating a lightening like scar where it did. The baby screamed in pain as the fragment entered and then he collapsed.

But that wasn't the end, a piece of the celling, broken loose from the backlash, fell onto the younger brother. The wood cut a mark on the boy's cheek in the shape of an X, drawing a little blood. The wood then bounced out of his crib and into his brother's, the bloody tip pointed right at his scar, which was bleeding. The brother's cut, amazingly, didn't bleed at all. Throughout this, the boy kept crying.

Outside, a small, rat-like man watched the whole thing. He had felt guilty about betraying his friends and, in a rare moment of bravery, had run to Godric's Hollow to warn them. He had arrived in time to watch Voldemort walk up the stairs. Ever scared, the man slowly crept into the house and up the stairs. He entered the nursery just in time to see Voldemort get destroyed. He then picked up the wand and thought hard. When word got out that it was he who had betrayed the Potters, it would be a life sentence in Azkaban, and he didn't want that. He thought how he could turn this to his advantage. Then, the answer came to him. He would have to work quickly if his plan was to work.

A few minutes later, a pop sounded as an old man appeared. He was tall, with long purple robes, and silver hair and beard that reached his belt. Albus Dumbledore entered the house of his former students. He had set up a ward that let him know if dark magic was performed in their house and the alarm had sounded just a few minutes ago. The Potter's house wasn't connected to the floo as a safety precaution so he had to walk beyond the wards of Hogwarts before he could Apparate to this location.

The headmaster found James Potter unconscious with a large bump on his head. Before he could wake him, he heard crying and ran up the stairs. There he found Lily, also unconscious but relatively unhurt, a sleeping Harry, and a crying Richard. He also noticed that remains of Voldemort and knew what had happened. It was immediately clear that Lily had tried to protect her children and been removed by Voldemort. She was only alive due to the pleas of his spy Severus Snape. Looking closely he was able to determine which of the boys had done the deed. Richard was awake and crying while Harry slept. There was also the fact that Harry's cut had come from a piece of falling wood while Richard's was clearly from dark magic.

He heard Lily stir and moved to help her.

"Easy my dear, you are hurt."

"Albus? James! Harry! Richard!" The woman launched herself up off the floor and ran to her children. She grabbed them out of their cribs and began rocking them with a well-practiced hand. "What happened, where's Voldemort, where's James, is he alright?"

Dumbledore placed his hand on the worried mother's shoulder comfortably. "He's fine, unconscious, but fine. But we must get you four to St. Mungo's as quickly as possible; you need to be looked over."

The woman then allowed herself to be lead downstairs where her husband was stirring. With a cry, Lily Potter flung herself on her husband, nearly knocking him over, and began crying in his shoulder. Dumbledore allowed them to have their moment, they had just nearly lost their lives, but repeated how necessary it was to get to St. Mungo's.

Later that night, at the hospital, James and Lily Potter waited for news about their children. Dumbledore had told them he was concerned about their health as no one had ever survived the Killing Curse before. Both parents had been shocked at his statement about surviving the Killing Curse but had consented to allow their children to be examined, they cared equally for them. They also waited on news about Peter Pettigrew as they had warned Dumbledore about him, who in turn warned the Ministry, who now had all of their Aurors out looking for him. Nearly a half hour after the children had been given to the healers, one of them came out.

"Are they alright, are my babies going to be alright?" Lily Potter had all but demanded of the healer. The healer looked uncomfortable for a few seconds before speaking.

"Both of you children are in good health, expect for one thing. Richard's magic is low, too low. Accidental magic among children younger than four or five is really dangerous as their core is still developing."

Lily was too frozen to speak so her husband did it for her. "What does this mean for Richard?"

On again the healer hesitated before speaking. "If it isn't corrected, there is a seventy percent chance that Richard could lose his magic forever and become a Squib. If this happens, there is another fifty percent chance that he could die."

Lily burst into tears at this point. James was not happy. "Isn't there anything you can do, Richard just destroyed Voldemort!"

For the third time the healer was silent before speaking. "There is one thing; there is an ancient ritual that we could use that would transfer Harry's magic into Richard's. We haven't performed this ritual in hundreds of years because in order to work, the subjects need to be younger than two, really close in age, and related. Most families aren't willing to risk one child's magic and life to save the other child's. The Ministry has also heavily restricted this ritual as it is seen as dark."

Lily was still crying, not paying attention to anything the healer said so James turned to Dumbledore. "Is Voldemort gone for good Dumbledore?"

Dumbledore sighed. He hated when such choices came down to his decision, it reminded him too much of his youth with Ariana and Gellert. He saw all children as equal and never believed in favoritism but Gellert's old slogan came back to him, the one he himself created, 'For the Greater Good'. How he hated that slogan after his sister's death but now it came back in full. He didn't have a choice, when Voldemort came back (Dumbledore truly believed he would, he had studied Tom too much not to believe it) he would hunt down Richard. When Voldemort did come back, Richard would be the only one able to finally defeat him. With a heavy heart, Dumbledore made his choice.

"No James, Voldemort isn't truly gone just yet. He _will_ come back, and when he does, only Richard will be able to defeat him."

James nodded and turned towards the healer. "Do the ritual, the Ministry won't care because this is Richard."

The healer nodded, turned, and entered through the doors he had left previously. James went to put his arms around Lily, who turned into his embrace and cried. Dumbledore watched them and hoped to Merlin that his choice wouldn't come back to haunt him as the one he had made back when he was younger.

_November 1, 1981 London street_

It was early morning after the night his master fell and Peter Pettigrew was worried. There had been no sign of his target and he was starting to fear that he would be caught before he found him. The London street had only a few muggles out and about at this time so Peter was able to see who was around him. If any Aurors or Ministry personal showed up, he'd Apparate away and continue his search elsewhere. Suddenly, a loud voice caught his and many of the muggles' attention.

"Peter!"

Peter turned around. There, making his way towards him with his wand out, was Sirius Black. Black was tall, well-built, and handsome, his long black hair catching the eye of a couple muggle women further down the street. Black's loud voice was beginning to attract attention and several more muggles came out it investigate what was going on. _Good,_ thought Peter,_ the more the better_. Prepared, Peter began to yet loudly.

"Black! I never should've give you that piece of paper! You lied to me Black, you lied! You said it was for McGonagall but it was really for your master wasn't it? You gave it to You-Know-Who and betrayed the Potters! You're the reason they're dead, you're the reason Harry and Richard are orphans! You're just like your family Black; cruel and dark! We should've since it right from the start but we wanted to believe that you were different! But you're not; you betrayed them and now their dead! I'll kill you Black, I'll kill you!"

Peter was crying at the end of his little speech; fake crying. Something he had worked on during his time at Hogwarts to get out of detention, and it worked too. The crowd around them was larger now and muttering about betrayal and death. A couple of women screamed at the thought of murder right in front of their eyes. Sirius never even got the chance the speak. Quickly drawing his wand, Peter muttered a curse and then cut off one of his fingers. The explosion covered the severing of his finger and his transformation into a rat. Peter then quickly ran down the nearest sewer drain.

A couple seconds later, Aurors, members of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and many other Ministry of Magic personnel Apparated to what remained of the street. Just behind where Peter had stood was a large crater with the bodies of twelve muggles strewn all over the place. Screams met the wizards' ears and the sound of laughter. Sirius Black laughed, he laughed at how Peter had pulled one giant prank on everyone, him included. Laughed at how Peter had hid his magical talent and just revealed it now. He ignored the people around him, he would explain the truth later and James would back him up. Then the two along with Remus would begin hunting for the little rat and make him pay.

_St. Mungo's Hospital_

Lily and James continued to waited for the healers to release their children, they hadn't seen them since they had given them over for the checkup. Dumbledore had left a few minutes earlier to check on the search for Peter. Suddenly the doors opened and three healers entered, two of them carrying the twins. Lily, red-eyed, stood up and quickly walked with James over to them. They both grabbed Richard and peppered him with hugs and kissed, then Lily separated and grabbed Harry. The lead healer spoke up.

"Both boys are completely healthy, the magic transfer was a complete success. Richard's magic fine and topped off while Harry is now a complete Squib."

Dumbledore chose that moment to return. James quickly spotted him and proudly held up Richard.

"Dumbledore! The healers said Richard is fine, he's not going to be a Squib or die. Isn't that great! What's wrong, what happened?" He had seen Dumbledore's sad face.

"I have some unfortunate news. It turns out that Peter didn't betray you like we thought. Sirius tricked him into giving up a piece of parchment which held the location of the house which he then gave to Voldemort. When Peter heard what happened, he perused Black, thinking you were dead and hoping to avenge you. Sirius, however, got the best of him. He blew up the street to kill Peter. All that was left was a single finger and twelve dead muggles. It turns out Sirius wasn't too different from his family after all."

At the news of two of hers friends, Lily once again burst into tears. Holding Harry tightly to her, she let James grip her tightly, welcoming his comfort. Dumbledore continued.

"The Ministry had decided to throw Sirius in Azkaban right away to avoid have the two of you from facing the pain of a trial. Unfortunately, I have to agree with them. I had hoped that maybe I could help Sirius change his ways but, after hearing what he did in south London…"

He ended the sentence there. Just hearing about what had happened had been horrible, saying it was worse. And for Lily and James to know, after they had suffered so much already, it was best not to speak of it. Dumbledore just watched the family of four comfort each other, he could see Harry leaning out of his mother's arm to look at him. He gave brief thoughts about sending Harry off to live at Lily's sister's, but quickly shot it down. He knew that Lily would never agree to it and besides, it was best to leave the little family together. He had learned that with Aberforth and Ariana. He once again hoped that he had made the right choice with Harry.

Later that day, the Potter family moved into Potter Manor, which had been abandoned after it was learned that Voldemort was after them. James immediately started to set up Richards own room as he didn't want him and Harry to share a room anymore, after all, Richard was now the Boy-Who-Lived while Harry was just a plain Squib. Lily had protested at first but relented when James had explained that the two needed to be separated eventually and this was the best time. He knew that there were still protests but she would let up for now. Meanwhile, the Wizarding World enjoyed a time of great celebration at the fall of Lord Voldemort to little Richard Potter. There was a scandal when it was learned that his brother Harry was a Squib, but it died down in time.

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><p><strong>There's chapter one. I'm still working over everything in this story so it will be slow going. Another thing, if this story has enough chapters, I may split it into two stories, with the first one being about Hogwarts and the second after. Right now though it doesn't look like it, but like I said, it's still a work in progress. Don't forget to tell me who you want to be Harry's Dark Lady; I'm personally leaning towards Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis, or Luna Lovegood as I have good ideas for them all. Tracey <strong>_**will**_** be a major friend for Harry though, so it could work out. Please review. **

**I included in this chapter what **_**I**_** think happened between the time Lord Voldemort heard the prophecy and attacked the Potters. If you look closely at the time line, you see that fifteen long months pass between Harry's birth and the death of Lily and James, why? Possibility one; and this one is highly likely, Rowling made a mistake. She has admitted that she isn't very good at math, so there you go. Option two; and this is what's in my story, it takes Voldemort a while to find out who the prophecy is about, look for them, and find Peter. **

**In the **_**Prisoner of Azkaban**_**, Peter says that Voldemort threatened him with death if he didn't do what he wanted, so I think that Peter only betrayed the Potters after Harry's birth, not before, like so many fanfics say. It only makes sense so take of it what you will and if you don't like it, tough beans. **

**One last thing, I'm absolutely horrible in name scrambling so I'm opening up a competition for all readers to see who can come up with the best anagram for Harry's name. You must use **_**all**_** the letters in his **_**full**_** name. I'm unsure as to what the winner will get so tell me what you want in your message. To prevent anyone from cheating, all entrees must be sent by IM. The winner will be send a message and then announced in a couple chapters. Have fun and think hard. **


	2. Life and Letters

**O.K., let me make something clear that some of you might have missed; Voldemort is dead. When he was hit with his own curse, the strain of sustaining his body was too much for his many Horcruxes so his soul tore itself apart. So Voldemort is dead and gone, he will not reappear in this story. Snowman794, you've actual hit on one of my ideas in this story, nice work. I'll also take your idea into consideration, but it may not work as I've already got something planned for Harry's Dark Lady. And speaking of the Dark Lady, only a small number of people have told me who they want, but the majority is Daphne with the rest being a small group of Harry/Luna or Harry/Susan, only two for each.**

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><p><em><span>Life and Letters <span>_

_March 21, 1987_

Harry stood in the rain, holding Rose's hand in his left. On his right was Richard with their father. All four watched with tears in their eyes as Lily Potter was lowered into the ground. Around them were other mourners, friends of Lily or the Potters. Harry could see the great Albus Dumbledore further more on his right, water dripping off his long beard. There were also Professors McGonagall and Flitwick from Hogwarts. Remus Lupin, Richard's godfather and James's best friend, stood just passed James Potter, his best robes looking odd on him as he watched one of his closest friends be buried.

The mourners stood around from a few minutes after the casket had been lowered before offering the Potters their condolences, mainly to James and Richard; Harry was largely ignored. He was used to this behavior as only three people in his life actually showed him any attention. Now the number was reduced to two. _Maybe_, Harry thought, _that will change now_. James Potter hadn't shown much interest in his eldest son with Richard being the Boy-Who-Lived. In fact, James didn't pay much attention to anyone except Richard. Richard of course was the same, paying attention to only his father and godfather Remus; his two siblings were completely ignored.

Harry started to escort Rose back to the house, all the rain and cold wouldn't be good for her, when a tall figure stepped in front of him. Looking up, Harry saw the sad face of his mother's best friend, Severus Snape. The black-haired man looked down at the two Potter children before giving Harry a small pat on the shoulder and then leaving. Pausing for a couple seconds to watch the man leave, Harry remembered how he and the Potions professor meet.

Harry's memory wasn't that good as he was really young at the time, but he did remember that Lily Potter had fallen really ill not long after the night Voldemort attacked, or at least, that was the excuse given. The illness also hadn't helped her pregnancy, or was it the other way around. It was discovered that Lily had been a couple weeks pregnant when Richard became the Boy-Who-Lived. A couple of times Lily had gotten so sick that she had nearly lost the baby, which was when she and Dumbledore called in for Severus.

James Potter hadn't been happy to learn that 'that greasy-haired git' was going to be coming around just about every day to give Lily many potions to help her. Lily and Dumbledore had to remind James, multiple times, that Snape was the best Potions Master available and was more than willing to help out his old friend. He had of course relented, but that didn't mean he liked it. Every time when Snape came over, James insulted, teased, taunted, and belittled him. Snape however, never raised his wand to retaliate or fought back, with words or curses, which made Lily happy though she tried to stop her husband.

Over time, Richard learned that his father didn't like the strange man who came to the house every day and started to repeat what James did, much to his joy. Harry learned too. He knew that his mother loved him very much but his father didn't spend one second of time or praise for Harry. Eager for his father's praise he thought that if he treated Snape the same as James and Richard, his father would love him too. It didn't happen, but that didn't stop Harry from trying. Slowly, Lily got better but she was still too weak to do much. She finally gave birth on May 30 to Rosaline 'Rose' Lily Potter, a small girl with bright red hair and light brown eyes, a month early.

Even after Rose's birth Lily didn't get any better, though it looked like she was revealed of a great burden. So Snape continued to come around to give Lily potions and get taunted at by the Potter boys. Rose stayed with her mother for nearly all of her first few years of her life and was taken care of mostly by her. Harry of course, was the helpful big brother and took care of Rose when Lily couldn't, the two forming a bond. James tried to stop it, but neither he nor Richard were that interested in taking care of Rose that much, especially as she cried heavily when she was away from Lily too much.

Eventually, at the age of six, Harry finally learned that no matter what he did, James Potter would never pay any attention to him at all. This revelation came after a prank Harry tried to play on Snape. It was fairly simple, for a six year old; a bucket of water over a doorway. He got the idea from a comment from James about how Snape never washed his hair. The result was a soaked and furious Snape, and a laughing James, Richard, Harry, and Remus rolling around on the floor. When James congratulated Richard on a job well done, Harry tried to tell his father that the prank was actually his idea. James just snapped at Harry to not try and take credit for his brother's amazing achievement. From their looks, Harry knew that Lily, Snape, and maybe Remus believed him.

Two days later, while Snape was giving Lily her potions, Harry appeared in the door way. In full view of his mother, he willing and fully apologize for his 'horrible and rude prank'. Snape was shocked that a Potter was apologizing and didn't say anything while Lily, crying, said she was proud of Harry. He then learned two things that day; his mother's praise was ten times better than his father's, and Snape wasn't as bad as his father said. Since that day, Harry sat with Rose and watched as Severus worked to heal Lily of her mysterious illness. Eventually the man warmed up to Harry and allowed both him and Rose to call him 'Uncle Severus' though he was also Rose's godfather, as if it wasn't for him, she wouldn't have been there at all.

Harry was jealous at this as both she and Richard had godfathers while his was in Azkaban for murder, not much of a godfather. During this time Harry also started to express an interest in Potions due to his mother's illness. Severus carefully and slowly talked about such things, often staying a bit latter than he usually did to talk to both Harry and Rose as Lily slept. It was after one of these times when Harry overheard his mother and Severus talking about how 'unfortunate that he (Severus) wouldn't be able to teach him (Harry) at Hogwarts'.

Confused, Harry wondered why Uncle Severus wouldn't be able to teach him at Hogwarts. Answers flew though Harry's mind, like James wouldn't allow the boys to take Potions, the class was going to be removed from Hogwarts, or that Severus would stop teaching by the time Harry went to Hogwarts. None of the answers made sense as Uncle Severus also talked about how much he wasn't looking forward to teaching Richard. Finally, after days of wondering, Harry asked his mother and learned the horrible truth; he, Harry James Potter, elder brother of Richard Potter, and heir to the Potter line, was a Squib. Hurt and angry, Harry fled from his mother's room and ran to his own on the other side of the Manor.

He spent several days there before Rose entered, asking Harry to come out again. He yelled at her, asking her how she wanted a Squib for a brother. With tears in her eyes, Rose said that she didn't care if Harry was a Muggle, Squib, or wizard; she just wanted her big brother back. Saddened over how he treated her, Harry finally left his room, apologized over how he treated her, and then gave his crying sister a big hug. He then slowly started to accept his being a Squib. Several times the two joked about what houses they would get at Hogwarts with input being provided occasionally by their mother and sometimes Severus.

Those happy times didn't last however. Only a month after being revealed a Squib, Harry entered his mother's room on March 16 to find her dead. Lily Potter's mysterious illness had finally claimed her life, a few years after the healers said it would. The Potters and Remus mourned for a few days before they held the funeral. Harry was brought out of his thoughts by his shivering sister. He quickly took her back to the Manor, placed her in front of the fireplace and asked the house-elves to fix some hot soup for the two.

Over the next few days the Potters continued to mourn Lily's passing, James even going as far as claiming that Severus had poisoned her. The five dealt with their grief in their own way. James and Richard spent more time than ever together, Remus started several jobs, both to pass the time and pay back James for his hospitality. Remus was a werewolf and therefore could find no job in the wizarding world and barely hold one down in the Muggle. James had plenty of money from his parents and didn't work, so he supported his last remaining friend. Lily of course wanted to work, doing research into Charms, preparing to replace Flitwick at Hogwarts. Going into hiding and then her illness had put a stop to those plans.

Harry did what he had done in the past; read. Upon learning that he couldn't do magic, Harry had begun spending a lot of time in the Potter family's library. His room wasn't that far from the library so it was easy to go back and forth, often spending the night there. Rose started to join him after Lily's death and so Harry began to start teaching her what he learned in the books. There weren't very many books for those younger than twelve, but Harry didn't care. Rose was a fast learner, almost catching up with Harry in a few months.

The two read much about what children there age learned at school; reading writing, math, history, etc. Lily had also added some Muggle books and the two treated them like a priceless treasure. There were also a few books on the Muggle world and the two read them as well to learn more about the world their mother was born and raised in. Harry read them more thoroughly as he suspected that his father wouldn't want him around, especially after he reached seventeen. The two also developed a ritual of going to visit their mother's grave every year on the day of her death and sometimes on her birthday. They sat and talked to her; Harry updated her on what he was teaching Rose.

More than a year after his mother's death, Harry discovered something amazing about himself. It was a warm April day and Harry was outside, in the field next the Manor where James and Richard practiced Quidditch. He had been walking around after running when he heard voices. Looking around, Harry didn't see anyone. Paying close attention, he learned that the voices were very strange. First, they didn't sound very human; it was almost deep and creepy. Second was that they spoke it broken English. Finally Harry looked down and saw two small snakes slithering around, occasionally looking up at him. The voices were coming from the snakes!

_{Great_, Harry said out loud, _I'm hearing snakes talk.}_

The snake furthest from him perked up its head. _{He speaks it_, it said, _he speaks it.}_

The two snakes turned around and slithered over to Harry. A long conversation later and Harry learned that he was a Parselmouth, a person who could talk to snakes. The snakes were a brother/sister duo called Apollo and Artemis. The three quickly became friends and Harry took them with him inside. They immediately liked being inside as it was warmer, especially in the later months. They were rather suspicious of the Squib thing as they had never heard of a Squib speaker before. They spent much of their time in Harry's room, sleeping on his comfy bed or in the sun. This was a good thing as Harry didn't think his father would be too happy with them, he had a firm dislike of all things Slytherin, snakes included. He also thought his father wouldn't take to the whole Parselmouth thing as it was considered a dark trait.

The few times Artemis and Apollo did leave Harry's room they went outside for hunting or were in the library while Harry researched them. In all of the books in the library, magical or muggle, Harry couldn't find what type of species of snake they were; they didn't know either. The unknown species wasn't the only thing weird about them. Apollo was the only one with fangs and as such, was venomous. However, his venom changed depending what he wanted, from paralysis to death to even healing. This interested Harry because many muggle religions had snakes as either symbols of death or healing. It also matched up with his namesake, the Greek god Apollo, known as the healer or plague giver. Also like his namesake, Apollo could briefly see into the future and 'see' small things yet to happen. He also liked music for some reason and acted immature.

Artemis however didn't have fangs or venom and instead squeezed her prey, though she didn't eat as much as her brother. She was very fast, often appearing out of nowhere and often scolded her brother for his actions and words and gave Harry bits of wisdom every now and again. She taught Harry much about she had learned and encountered, particularly about other animals. Artemis also acted as a mother figure to Harry and though she would never replace Lily, Harry greatly appreciated her thoughts and words. She and Rose also very friendly with each other, though Rose couldn't understand her. Out of the two snakes, Harry liked Artemis the best and often teased Apollo about it, though he teased Harry in turn. Harry didn't know how old the snakes were, and neither did they, but Harry assumed that they were only a couple of years old, yet they acted at lot older at times.

Such was how Harry passed his time at Potter Manor. He spent much of his time either in his room with Apollo and Artemis or in the library with Rose. Sometimes Artemis would join them, occasionally with Apollo; she was curious about what humans wrote about and would teach some things to Harry and Rose. A couple of times a week Harry would go outside and run for exercise, though not at the same time Richard was riding a broom. Rose joined him once or twice a week. Harry tried to get her to learn how to ride a broom but neither was experienced so Rose decided to wait until Hogwarts. Artemis encouraged these exercises and went with them to enjoy the sun when it was warm.

Occasionally Harry and Rose would receive a letter from Severus asking how they were doing; he didn't feel welcome at Potter Manor after Lily's death. Harry was unhappy with this as it meant he didn't get to see his Uncle. Although he did join them once or twice at Lily's grave over the years, the two siblings didn't see their Uncle much. It wasn't as bad for Rose as Harry knew that she would get to see her godfather a lot in a couple of years but Harry felt robbed, he felt like Severus was the only one apart from Apollo and Artemis who understood him. He had even confided in Artemis that Severus felt more like a father to him than James or even Remus did.

Remus was a strange one; sometimes he would ignore Harry like James, and others he would acknowledge him a bit. He spent much of his time at his many jobs, with James, or his godson Richard. On Christmas and birthdays, Remus's presents weren't very big or even expensive like Richard wanted, but Harry appreciated the books he gave him and Rose. Sometimes Remus was even a good source on the muggle world as his mother was a muggle-born and his paternal grandmother was a muggle. This was how Harry spent his life until the morning of his eleventh birthday.

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><p><em>July 31, 1991<em>

Harry awoke felling warm and comfortable with a heavy weight on his chest. Opening his eyes he saw that Apollo was curled up and snoozing on his stomach. The two snakes had grown from about twenty inches long and four inches around when he first found them to almost three feet long and six inches thick and it looked like they would continue growing. Without knowing what species they were, Harry didn't know how big they would get. Sliding Apollo off of him, Harry climbed out of bed and his place was quickly taken by Apollo. Smirking, Harry grabbed the top of his covers and threw them over Apollo.

_{Hey!} _

_{Well that's what you get for being a cheeky snake.}_

_{Shut it Artemis! I just like a comfy spot to sleep and Harry's bed is quite warm.}_

Still smiling, Harry left the arguing snakes and went down to breakfast, maybe if he hurried, he could get away before Richard's Hogwarts letter arrived. He meet a sleepy Rose along the way, still clutching her stuffed toy cat, a birthday present Lily had gotten her just before her death. James and Richard were already there, digging into the eggs the house-elves made and talking with their mouths full without a female presence to scold them for doing so. Disgusted by his father's and brother's table manners, Lily had taught him otherwise, Harry ignored his plate of eggs, which was snatched up by Richard and grabbed some toast and juice.

As quickly and politely as he could, Harry shoved the toast in his mouth before the owl got here. He wasn't quick enough; just as he was finishing half of the last slice of toast, the owl flew through the open window, dropped the letter on Richard's plate (_"Hey_!_"_), grabbed a piece of bacon, and flew off again. Excited, Richard forgot all about his half-finished breakfast and tore open the letter. He then began whooping excitedly while James clapped so hard.

"This is the proudest moment of my life; my son is finally going to Hogwarts."

Harry decided to not remind his father that he had two sons and that _he_ was the oldest and put his plate aside. Quickly downing his juice, Harry made to leave the kitchen before James got even more emotional but was stopped when another owl flew through the window towards him. The owl landed in front of him and held out the letter tied to its leg. Harry removed the letter and Rose, who had joined Harry to get away from her father and brother, gave it the last of her breakfast before it flew off.

Starring at the letter, the two recognized the Hogwarts crest; a lion, snake, eagle, and badger surrounding a large letter _H_. Shocked, Harry turned over the letter to see the address.

_Mr. H. Potter_

_The Third Floor Bedroom on the Left Side_

_Potter Manor_

_Wales_

Gasping, Rose covered his mouth with her hands and looked up at her brother with wide-eyes. Harry was too shocked to speak, why would Hogwarts write him? Hands shaking, Harry slowly opened the envelope, nearly ripping it. Taking out the smaller piece of parchment, Harry read.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: ALBUS PERCIVEAL WULFRIC BRIAN DUMBLEDORE_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…_.

Harry dropped the letter. This couldn't be happening, he was a Squib right? He had dreamed of going to Hogwarts since he'd first heard of it and being revealed a Squib had sent all of those dreams crashing down. Maybe this happened with all Squibs, that's right, it happened and the parents dealt with it when it happened, he wouldn't get all of his hopes up only for them to come crashing down again. Rose picked up the letter, read the first line and squealed. It was this that brought Harry out of his thoughts and James's and Richard's attention to them. James walked over, grabbed the letter out of his daughter's hands and read it before his face turned a great shade of red.

Crushing the letter in his hand, he grabbed Harry's arm, said _'Come!'_ and dragged him to the living room. Harry thought that he was overreacting over the letter but was too scared to say anything. Looking back, Harry saw Richard looking confused while Rose looked scared. Stopping in front of the fireplace, James grabbed a handful of floo powder and threw it into the fireplace.

"HEADMASTER'S OFFICE, HOGWARTS!"

Harry was wide-eyed as he was dragged into the fireplace. They were going to deal with it with the Headmaster personally? He suddenly had the feeling that it wasn't as a common occurrence as he originally thought and was even more scared.

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><p><strong>I've got to thank everyone who has read so far, I've gotten some reviews that state that they don't like either dark or evil Harry. That's O.K., I respect their opinions, it just makes me appreciate those of you who have actually read this so far, I think it just might be my best. <strong>


	3. Explanations and Diagon Alley

**I've decided to post this chapter a little earlier as I'm back in school tomorrow. I don't know how much time I'll get to write during the year but I will update every once and a while, I currently have chapter seven finished. ****More explanations are given here, as well as a few questions.**

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><p><em><span>Explanations and Diagon Alley <span>_

_July 31, 1991 Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts_

Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in England, looked up from his desk when he heard his floo activate. Entering his office was an angry James Potter and his eldest son, the Squib Harry. Dumbledore always felt bad about making Harry a Squib. Like Voldemort, he understood that twin wizards were exceptionally powerful. It was unfortunate that they had lost such a potential wizard but it was better to have Harry a Squib and his brother alive and with magic than have Harry a wizard but Richard dead or a Squib. Curious about to why the two had visited today, especially as Richard was supposed to get his Hogwarts letter today, Dumbledore spoke up.

"Welcome James, Harry. What can I do for you today?"

Without speaking, James threw the letter on Dumbledore's desk and stared at it like it was offending him. Confused, Dumbledore pick up the letter, smoothed it out, and read it. As he finished, Dumbledore's eyes grew wide.

"Well?" James demanded.

Dumbledore sighed. "I'm afraid James, that this is entirely out of my hands."

"What do you mean it's out of your hands, you wrote the bloody letter!"

Please, sit down, the both of you, and I will explain." Dumbledore's calm statement awed Harry as he was still scared of his father. James forcefully grabbed the nearest chair and sat down. Harry meanwhile, took his time as he was glance between his father's angry face and Dumbledore's calm one. Once both Potters were seated, Dumbledore began his explanation.

"As you may or may not know, magical children are signed up for Hogwarts when they are born. In case you've forgotten James, Harry here was born a wizard. He only became a Squib after the magic transfer to save Richard. Even after that, Hogwarts still recognizes him as a student, so that's why an acceptance letter was sent."

Dumbledore smiled as he finished his little speech. He expected everything to be finished at the end but one look at his guests' faces and he could see something else was wrong. Harry's face was full of complete shock and hurt while James's had fear and uncomfortably. He quickly realized his mistake, but it was too late to correct it.

"Why?" Harry's voice was soft, full of hurt. Dumbledore winced. Such hurt should not be present in any child. Harry didn't know what he was feeling. He had accepted his magiclessness, but to find out that his magic was now running through Richard was unacceptable.

"Dumbledore, couldn't we Obliviate him or something?"

Dumbledore was shocked at such a suggestion. "No James, it could cause irreparable damage to him." It was why even the best Obviators didn't work on children. Thank-fully, there were only a handful of incidents in which a muggle child discovered magic. They eventually dismissed the whole thing or forgot about it when they got older.

James uncomfortably turned towards his son. "Look, Harry. Richard was going to die without magic. You must understand that it was for the best."

Jams must have interpreted Harry's silence as acceptance because he turned back to Dumbledore. The professor himself however recognized that Harry didn't accept it and was once again hurt at what he had to do to the boy.

"I hope this clears everything up Dumbledore? "

"I'm afraid not James. Harry has received his letter and only he can decide whether or not he wants to study here at Hogwarts."

Quickly, James turned back towards Harry. "You don't want to come here, do you Harry? You would be so different from the other students. I can pay for you to go to the best college or university if you decline Hogwarts. What do you say?"

Harry didn't even hear him. He was too focused on the fact that there was the possibility that he could actually go to Hogwarts. It had been his dream forever, a dream that had ended when he found out that he was a Squib. Now the dream was real again. "I want to go."

James turned angry. Standing up and grabbing Harry by the shoulders, shaking him he said, "You will tell Professor Dumbledore that you do not want to go to Hogwarts right this minute!"

"James! Control yourself. If Harry wants to go to Hogwarts then he can, you cannot stop him."

"You tell me Dumbledore, how the bloody hell can he even _see_ Hogwarts, let alone attend it? And what will he do while all the other students are learning magic?"

Dumbledore shook his head at James's ignorance. "I see you haven't done any studying on Squibs even though you have one as a son. Unlike muggles, Squibs have a magical core, they just can't perform magic. Argus Filch is a Squib, as you discovered your third year, and he takes good care of Hogwarts. Harry here can do many things that other magical children his age can; ride a broom, use the floo, among other things, but he won't be able to do anything magical like Apparate or use a wand. As for the classes, no he won't be able to attend very many, but he will be able to attend some. He'll go to Potions, History of Magic, Herbology, Astronomy, and I think that he should take Muggles Studies as well. Later on he can take all the electives; Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Divination, and Care of Magical Creatures. What he does in his free time is up to him, though I suggest taking up a hobby, like learning a new language, that's always good."

Harry was listening intently, soaking everything in. He was finally going to Hogwarts. James, however, was starting to fume.

"This is complete and utter madness Dumbledore and you know it! A Squib at Hogwarts! Will he be sorted?"

"Of course James, Harry is still a student of Hogwarts. I'm sorry you think so badly of this situation, but really, it is an excellent opportunity."

James Potter wasn't listening. As soon as Dumbledore finished, he stood up and exited through the floo. Harry, still scared, looked at Dumbledore. The headmaster smiled, nodded and Harry too left. Before he did though, he asked Dumbledore one last question.

"Is magic power sir?"

Surprised at the question, Dumbledore was caught off guard for a bit before answering. "Of course not Harry. Just look at the muggles, they've invented so many wondrous things without the aid of magic. Now, run along home and please, do try your best while you're a student here."

As Harry left the office, Dumbledore began thinking. He was immensely happy that Harry was able to attend Hogwarts, no child should be denied. He knew that Harry, like so many other Squibs, would try to remain in the magical world, and now he could. He knew that twins in the magical world were very powerful and any child of Harry's, especially if he married a witch, would be powerful as well, maybe even more so depending on the witch. The chances of Harry marrying a witch were slim before, but now they were very good, no doubt there would be at least one girl willing to see past his being a Squib. He also planned to use Harry as a test. If Harry did well, he would have ammunition to try and persuade the school governors to open Hogwarts to Squibs at last, or consider making a new school for just Squibs. That fact that Squibs were forced to leave the magical world troubled Dumbledore, they were still able to produce witches and wizards, they just couldn't do magic. Harry would be the one that changed how the wizarding world viewed Squibs, he knew it. Unfortunately for Dumbledore, he was right, just not in the way he imagined.

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><p>When Harry got back to Potter Manor, Rose was waiting impatiently for him. Bouncing on her feet, she demanded to know what was going on as James didn't say anything, he had just stormed back through the floo and gone to his study and slammed the door. Harry dragged her to his room and explained everything about the magic transfer and him going to Hogwarts with Apollo and Artemis closely listening in. Rose was excited that her big brother would be able to attend Hogwarts but was disturbed that Harry's magic was in Richard.<p>

"It's not fair, why should _he_ have _your_ magic?"

"I don't know Rose, but I swear, one day I _will_ find out how to get my magic back or die trying."

A modified book list arrived for Harry the next morning. Too angry to take Richard shopping the previous day, James and the rest Potter family went on August 1. Richard was excited to attend Hogwarts and didn't think twice about his Squib brother attending. Rose was wide-eyed as she saw Diagon Alley for the first time, as did Harry. James was uncomfortable about bringing Harry and had planned to not bring him to avoid having him go to Hogwarts. That didn't work as Rose had told Harry the moment they were leaving. Once they arrived, James pulled Harry aside.

"Look Harry, its uncomfortable shopping with you. Just take this and meet up with us later."

He then pressed a small bag of money into Harry's hands and hurried off towards Richard. Rose looked back at Harry, but he ushered her on with their father. Knowing where his family would go first, Harry went right for Flourish and Blotts bookstore. He knew that his father would want to spend as little time in there as possible and would delay going there until the end so Harry decided to spend as much time in there as possible, especially as he didn't need as much as Richard. Harry quickly found his required books for History, Herbology, Astronomy, and Muggle Studies, but spent more time looking for his Potions book. This was the class Harry was most interested in as Uncle Severus was teaching it.

His required Potions book wasn't hard to find, but once he did, Harry continued to look. His search paid off as he found a group of Potions books that looked interesting. _A Beginners' Guide to Potion Making (Hogwarts Years 1-3), An Intermediate Guide to Potion Making (Hogwarts Years 4-5), An Advanced Guide to Potions Making (Hogwarts Years 6-7), _and _A Potions Master's Guide to Potions Making (for the Masters)_. All were by Professor Anthony Marchbanks, a renowned Potions maker worldwide. Excited, Harry quickly grabbed the only set, and ran towards the counter. The shopkeeper barely glanced at the books as he ringed them up until he saw the second Marchbanks book. He took a second look before continuing. The third and fourth book caused him to pause and look at Harry for a few seconds before continuing. He paused and stared one more time once he reached the Muggle Studies book, but the line behind Harry forced him to quickly finish.

Carrying his books, Harry then went to Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions. It took a couple minutes to fit his robes. When Harry left, he smiled and held the door open for the blonde girl and her mother that entered as he was leaving. At the Apothecary, Harry got a bit more of his ingredients than was required as well as an extra set of phials. He wanted to be able to practice his Potions making in his free time. Next Harry bought a trunk. Thinking he would encounter some trouble because he was a Squib, Harry bought a three compartment trunk with a lock keyed only to him.

Seeing he had everything on his list, Harry decided to join his family. If James didn't like it, he would take Rose and they would go back to Flourish and Blotts or to Potter Manor. Spotting them was both easy and difficult, there was a large crowd slowly making their way towards Ollivanders, accompanied by a couple of random flashes and shouts of 'Richard'. The crowd thinned just as they reached the wand shop and Harry was able to see his family go in. Rushing towards them, Harry was barely able to make it inside the shop. A small bell jingled as Harry entered, causing his father to look up. He just glared at Harry before going back to Richard, who was being measured by a tall old man.

Rose smiled at him and he went to join her in the back. Ollivander was talking about the wands he made, what they were like, and what wands James and Lily had gotten. Richard was bored with the whole thing, James just wanted Richard to get his wand, but Rose was eating it all up. Soon Richard was trying all sorts of wands. James's and Richard's excitement seemed to dim as the minutes passed and the pile of used wands grew larger and larger. Ollivander however, was growing happier and happier.

"Tricky customer, eh? Don't worry, we'll find your wand."

"Maybe he needs a _special_ wand." James interrupted.

Ollivander looked up. He appeared annoyed that someone was telling him how to do his job but then the look changed to one of wonder. He went into the back of the shop and brought out a dusty old box.

"Maybe; holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches."

He handed the wand to Richard, who raised high about his head. When he brought in down, a couple of red sparks flew out of the tip. James cheered and clapped, but Ollivander looked disappointed. He took the wand from Richard and put it on his desk, away from the other wands.

"Isn't that Richard's wand?"

"I'm afraid not Mr. Potter. While the wand will work for him, something about the wand is rejecting him. It's strange; I've never seen anything like it before."

A few minutes later and Richard had his wand. It was a unique one that Ollivander had been experimenting with; ten and a half inches, Hungarian Horntail heartstring, Whomping Willow wood. Like the holly wand, it had produced a small number of red sparks when Richard used it, but Ollivander said it was for him.

"This wand chose you, but it's strange. There is something about you that the wand is rejecting so it won't work as well as it should. Not that it matters; that combination is just an experiment but it should produce some rather powerful spell work, more powerful than usual."

The family was leaving when Harry heard Ollivander call out for him.

"Not so fast young man, you still need a wand as well."

"No I don't, I'm…"

"Nonsense, every young witch or wizard needs a wand when they start Hogwarts. Never mind about using one passed down in your family, you need your own wand."

Ollivander dragged Harry back into his shop despite Harry's protests that he didn't need a wand. He then measured him as he had done Richard and started looking for wands. The entire time Harry tried to explain that he was a Squib, but Ollivander wasn't listening. Like Richard, Harry ended up trying dozens of wands; many from Richard's discard pile. Harry felt that the only way Ollivander would listen was when he had tried every wand in the shop. Finally, Ollivander began muttering and then pick up the lone holly wand and gave it to Harry. When he touched it, Harry felt a tingling sensation going through his arm. Feeling foolish, Harry waved the wand and green sparks came out.

"Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed, oh, very good. I knew we would find your wand in the end. Though it is rather curious. I thought that your brother would get this wand as the phoenix who gave the feather in your wand gave just one other feather. That feather went into the wand that gave your brother his famous scar. What is also rather curious is that it worked for your brother, but rejected him. This wand is yours and will work for you, but something is holding back its true power, much like your brother's true wand."

Shocked over the fact that he actually got a wand, Harry was speechless and didn't say anything the rest of the time he was in the shop. After paying for the wand, Harry left Ollivander's, caressing his new wand. Looking up, he suddenly realized that he had spent almost ten minutes in the shop and had lost his family. Quickly looking around, Harry finally spotted them coming out of Eeylops Owl Emporium, Richard carrying a cage containing a beautiful snowy owl. Rose was darting her head back and forth, looking for something, as she walked. When she saw Harry, she ran over and slammed into him, giving him a hug.

"Where were you?" she asked. "Nobody noticed that you were gone. What's that?"

She pointed at the small box in Harry's hand that contained his new wand.

"Shh, I'll show you later. Come on, we need to get back."

Harry then led a pouting Rose back to James and Richard at the entrance to Diagon Alley. Loaded down with packages, the Potter family flooed back to Potter Manor, but not before James gave Harry another glare for daring to go to Diagon Alley and Hogwarts.

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><p><strong>O.K., I think I've gotten who everyone wants to be the Dark Lady, but just to make sure, everyone should review. The Dark Lady will be revealed in chapter 5, whenever it's posted. Also, if you don't like the story, just say so without bringing me down, <strong>**like ****O Jordinio O, who gave an absolutely terrible review. I like my story and I'm sure many of you do too. **


	4. The Hogwarts Express

**Here is chapter four for everyone. Because of how my schedule works out, I can easily write most, in not all, of a chapter on Fridays, which means that one can be posted either of Fridays or Saturdays, so look to those days for updates.**

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><p><em><span>The Hogwarts Express<span>_

Harry's excitement at going to Hogwarts was contagious; Rose, Apollo, and Artemis couldn't wait for September First. Apollo and Artemis were going with Harry of course. The letter had said that students could bring an owl, cat, or toad, but they said nothing about bringing a couple of snakes. Apollo had asked the moment Harry had gotten back from Diagon Alley and Harry had told the snake yes, after watching him get smacked on the head by his sister, again. Rose had completely abandoned her own studies to be with her brother and his new books, much to Artemis's disappointment. Both children were fascinated by Harry's books, even though there were only eight, half of them were Marchbanks'. After a little encouragement from Harry, Rose also stole Richard's books so that the two could read them as well. It wasn't hard as Richard didn't even touch them and just left them on his desk.

Rose mainly read Richard's _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_ and _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_, sometimes with Artemis on her shoulders, reading as well. Rose was completely fascinated by spell-work, most likely a product of being around Harry most of her life, but was also enchanted by many of the magical beasts that existed in the world. Harry meanwhile stuck with _A Beginner's Guide to Potion Making (Hogwarts Years 1-3)_ and _A History of Magic_. This was because he knew Snape was still teaching Potions (James and Richard had been complaining about it nonstop) and because of his interest in Potions itself. History was another thing that interested Harry, so he studied that book as well, even more so when he heard James tell Richard that it was completely boring everyone feel asleep in that class.

They both read _Magical Theory_; Rose because she wanted to know and be ahead of her year, and Harry because he didn't plan on staying a Squib forever. He knew that there was a large library at Hogwarts so he also planned to spend some of his free time there researching spells that he could memorize and, eventually, preform. Artemis demanded to know everything in the books and asked them to be read out loud. Harry had Rose do that to improve her reading skill and so he could take notes, he didn't know when he would be able to get to those books again. Apollo simply snoozed in the sun.

The two snakes rarely went outside anymore because of Richard's new owl, Hedwig. Surprisingly, it wasn't Richard who named her, but Rose. All Richard did was put her in his room and leave the window open, that was it, he didn't even think of a name until about a week before Hogwarts. Jams had asked his son what the owl's new name was and Richard just stumbled over the question, a hint of things to come Harry thought. Rose had then suggested the name, an interesting one from one of the books she had read, and the owl had liked it immediately. Now Hedwig responded to nothing but, a disappointment for Richard as he wanted to name her Atlas, never mind that she wasn't a male owl.

As they got closer and closer to the day Richard and Harry would leave for Hogwarts, Rose started to become gloomier and gloomier. Harry wasn't too concerned as he thought that the excitement might be wearing off but during dinner the night before they were to leave, she hardly touched any of her dinner. Finally Harry decided to see what was up with her. When he asked, she snapped at, much in the same way he had when he found out he was a Squib.

"Tomorrow you're leaving for Hogwarts, leaving me here all alone! I thought it would be great when Richard finally left for Hogwarts because then he would be gone and couldn't bother us anymore! But now you're going too and I won't have anyone because Artemis and Apollo are leaving with you!"

Harry understood. She wasn't only feeling bad about being the only one left, apart from James and Remus, but she also felt bad because deep inside, she was wishing that Harry wouldn't be able to go to Hogwarts because he was a Squib. Then she wouldn't be alone. Harry then grabbed his sister and held her as she cried into his shoulder. He comforted her and promised her that he would write her every day if she wished so that she wouldn't feel alone. At last Rose stopped crying, apologized for yelling at him and agreed with Harry's idea. She begged for every detail about Hogwarts, the houses, the teachers, the classes, everything. Never being able to resist her puppy-dog eyes, Harry promised her.

The next morning, Harry was awoken by a loud Richard, who was running all over the manor, trying to find everything to pack before the Hogwarts Express left. Rose joined Harry in his room to escape from the noise and helped Harry pack the few things he had left out. After comforting Rose last night, Harry had packed everything he could into his three compartment trunk, leaving out only a change of clothes, his pajamas, a book, and Apollo and Artemis. Harry smiled as he carried his trunk down the stairs; he had packed all of his school supplies in one compartment, his clothes in a second, and all of his books in the third, along with a few from the Potter Library and some journals he bought for notes.

Harry and Rose spent thirty minutes enjoying a light breakfast and laughed as James and Richard scrabbled all over the house trying to find every last thing. Harry particularly enjoyed the part where Richard had to unpack his entire trunk to get to his left shoe, which he had packed, while Rose laughed her head off while their father looked for his glasses for ten minutes, only to discover that he was already wearing them. Finally they were ready to go and, with James and Remus's help, Apparated to King's Cross Station in London. James pushed Richard's trolley through the barrier with Richard while Remus went with Rose, leaving Harry by himself. Taking a deep breath, Harry closed his eyes and ran straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten.

When Harry opened his eyes, he was facing a large scarlet steam engine surrounded by a large crowd of people of various ages and dress. Here and there he could see some people his own age as well as some teens, dressed in either robes or muggle clothing. Around them were younger siblings, parents, guardians, aunts, uncles, and even one older woman who was scolding her grandson. Laughter, crying, and various animal noises made hearing difficult so Harry didn't find Rose right away. After a couple minutes of searching, it was surprising how fast someone could disappear on a crowded platform; he found her waving at him. Steering his trolley over to her, Harry saw that his family was talking with a large red-head family.

Remus was talking to the eldest boy who wore horn-rimmed glasses, his Hogwarts robes, and a large red and gold badge with a P on it. Two twins stood off to the side, speaking in hushed whispers to James, who also tried to talk to the plump witch in front of him. Richard and a tall boy his age were off to the side, also speaking in hushed tones, sneaking glances at Harry every once and a while. The last person in the group was a little girl who looked just a little younger than Harry with fiery red hair, who kept glancing at Richard with a bright red blush on her face. Harry knew that this was the Weasley family, the boy Richard's age was Ron, Richard's best friend.

Harry gave Rose a quick hug before sneaking away to the train. Finding an empty compartment near the middle of the train, Harry stored his trunk in it and opened it a bit so that Artemis and Apollo could get out. Once he was sure that no one would discover them, Harry left the compartment and returned to his family and the Weasleys. Rose was holding Remus's hand again, the Prefect gone. Mrs. Weasley was now scolding her twin sons while Ron and Richard snickered behind her. The little girl tore her eyes from Richard, noticing Harry. She stared at him for a couple seconds before giving him a small smile, which he returned. While Mrs. Weasley and James were busy, Harry dragged Rose away for a couple of seconds. He gave her a long hug good-bye and repeated his promise to her as she cried. Finally Harry said one last good-bye and returned to the Hogwarts Express.

A couple minutes later and the train was leaving the station. Harry watched as Mrs. Weasley, James, and Remus waved to someone further back on the train and then as Rose and the little girl Weasley ran with the train, crying and waving at the same time. They soon feel behind and just stood there, waving to their respective brothers. Just before the train rounded the corner, Harry thought he saw Remus give a little wave to him. Soon they had left London behind them and all that was out the window were hills and grass with the occasional house. Deciding to pass the time reading, Harry dug out his Potions book and sat down to read while Apollo and Artemis curled up under the seat.

After a couple of seconds passed in silence, there was a knock on the compartment door. Looking up, Harry saw the blonde girl from Madam Malkin's. Now that he was seated and neither were in a hurry, Harry was able to get a better look at her. Although Harry wouldn't consider himself short, he was a bit shorter than most boys his age and the girl in front of him was even shorter. Her hair was a golden blonde while her eyes were a light green.

"Do you mind if I sit here for a while?" she asked. "I'm supposed to meet my friend on the train but I can't find her anywhere."

"Not at all." Said Harry, pointing at the bench in front of him.

The girl smiled and took the seat. "I'm Tracey by the way, Tracey Davis."

"My name's Harry, nice to meet you." Harry held out his hand and Tracey shook it. "What's your friend's name?"

"Daphne Greengrass. We were supposed to meet on the platform but it was too crowded. I decided to search for her on the train but there's too many people here as well."

"I understand. I got separated from my sister on the platform and it took me awhile to find her. Just wait a while; I'm sure your friend is looking for you."

"Thanks, what are you reading?"

This lead into a discussion about how excited they were to be going to Hogwarts and what classes they were excited to take. Tracey talked on and on about the Charms her father was able to do and the magical plants her mother grew. Harry mainly talked about his interest in Potions, something he shared with Tracey friend Daphne, but was very careful about how talked, he didn't want Tracey to find out he was a Squib. Tracey did most of the talking; an easy feat as Harry could barely get her to shut up, but she did managed to drag him into a discussion about what house they would get. Harry, although hearing bad, and possibly untrue things, about it, was all for Slytherin while Tracey thought either Slytherin or Ravenclaw.

Their conversation was interrupted by another girl entering the compartment. She was taller than Tracey and Harry, about an inch or two for Harry, had long light brown hair that reached just passed her shoulders, and bright, icy-blue eyes. She was already dress in her Hogwarts robes.

"Tracey, there you are! I've been looking all over this train for you. Where have you been?"

"Daphne! Sorry, but I couldn't find you earlier on the platform or when I was looking for you in the halls. I decided to sit with Harry here for a bit and wait for you to find me."

The girl, Daphne, turned to look at Harry for the first time. She stuck her hand out in a snobbish manner and said "Daphne Greengrass.".

Harry took her hand and shook it. "Harry, why don't you join us?" He motioned towards the seat next to Tracey. Daphne looked back and forth between Harry, the seat, and an eager Tracey, before Tracey herself grabbed Daphne's sleeve and dragged her down on the seat.

Harry had no idea how two such different people like Tracey Davis and Daphne Greengrass could be such good friends. Tracey was warm, friendly, inviting, and just full of energy while Daphne was cold, calculating, and barely spoke two words. After listening for a while, and voicing his question, Harry got his answer. Tracey's mother grew many rare and/or expensive magical plants that Daphne's parents sold in their import/export business. Not having any other kids their own age, the two girls had quickly become fast friends. Harry understood how they felt; although Rose was a good friend, sometimes he longed for a friend his own age. But that was difficult as Harry was a Squib.

The two girls stayed after the snack trolley passed and Harry slowly started to learn more about the girls. Daphne, he learned, was only cold because of her upbringing and rarely showed any emotion, even around her little sister Astoria and Tracey. After a couple of minutes, Harry managed to pull Daphne enough out of her shell to play 'Guess the Bean Flavor' with a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, which ended after Daphne was unlucky enough to get a dirty sock flavored bean. After this, she refused to say another word and glared at Tracey, who continued to laugh at her misfortune even ten minutes afterwards. They were interrupted twice, once by a round boy looking for a toad, the second by a blond boy with two gorilla-like boys.

"What do you want Malfoy?" Daphne said in an annoyed voice.

Malfoy, the blond boy, spoke up. "Just checking out this year's supply. I'm trying to see how many mudbloods actually managed to get into Hogwarts this year. Oh, and I'm looking for Richard Potter."

Harry had a very hard time keeping his mouth shut. Although he and his father didn't get along, if there was one thing they agreed on was that calling someone a 'mudblood' was unforgivable. Of course James had talked about the Malfoys. Harry didn't know how much of it was true and right now he didn't care. Too angry to think of what he was saying, Harry said, "If you're looking for my brother, he's most likely at the very end of the train, trying to get as many followers as he can."

Harry suddenly realized what he said and that he had five pairs of eyes on him. Uncomfortable, Harry shifted on his seat.

"_You_ are the brother of the Boy-Who-Lived?"

This came from Daphne and shocked Tracey and Harry. These were the most words she had said in one sitting the entire trip. The Malfoy boy cocked his head and stared at Harry in a calculating way.

"Why haven't we heard of you before?"

Wishing he had kept his big, fat mouth shut, Harry struggled to quickly come up with a good excuse to Malfoy's question. "I… I just don't like all the attention. Anyways, who wants to hear about the plain old brother of Richard Potter?"

Tracey, Malfoy, and his two goons nodded at Harry explanation like it made sense, but Daphne continued to stare at Harry like she didn't fully believe him.

"That makes sense I guess. I'm Draco Malfoy. These two are Crabbe and Goyle."

"I'm Harry." He stuck out his hand to Malfoy, but the blonde boy didn't take it. Lowering his hand, Harry sat back down nervously. He had probably given too much away and they were about to find out he was a Squib.

"I take it your brother thinks he's all great or something because he has a famous scar, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, he's really arrogant too. Really, he's too stupid to do anything. In fact, he's too stupid to be in Ravenclaw, he'll drop you if your useless so Hufflepuffs out, and don't even think of Slytherin for him, he hates the place like my father."

"And you?"

Harry fidgeted nervously. "I don't think Slytherins all that bad; I mean look at Professor Snape."

This got Malfoy's attention. "You know Professor Snape?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, he used to come around our house when I was younger and he's my sister's godfather."

"Snape's my godfather too. You know, you're not so bad, for a Potter. Maybe we can be friends after all. See you in Slytherin."

With that Malfoy and his goons left the compartment. Tracey and Daphne looked at each other for a second before they too stood.

"We should get back to my compartment Tracey, come on. It was…pleasant to meet you Harry Potter."

Daphne's cold voice looked for the proper word to say before she left. Tracey followed a second later with a quick 'see you at Hogwarts Harry'. Harry was now left alone in his compartment. Apollo stuck his head out from under Harry's seat.

_{Are they gone now?} _

_{Yes.} _

_{Thank goodness_, he said, crawling out from under the seat, _I thought they would never leave. They were too noisy.} _

_{I liked them_, said Artemis, following her brother out. _{Especially that Tracey, she seems nice.} _

_{She's a complete chatter box. I hope you don't get the same house as her otherwise I'll never get some sleep.} _

_{The boys and girl dorms are separated Apollo. Even if I get the same house as Tracey she won't be able to disturb your many naps.} _

_{Good.}_

With that, Apollo crawled up the seat a claimed the warm spot where Tracey had just sat. Artemis joined Harry on his seat and started to quietly converse with him about what life at Hogwarts would be like. When it started turning dark, Harry pulled on his Hogwarts robes and packed up his book. A couple minutes later, a snoring Apollo was woken by an announcement sounding throughout the entire train.

_{AHH!}_, he screamed as he fell from the seat, Artemis laughing.

"We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train; it will be taken to the school separately."

_{Darn, annoying loudspeaker}_ he grumbled as both Harry and Artemis laughed. Still grumbling, both he and Artemis crawled back into Harry's trunk. Shoving that last of his sweets into his trunk as well, Harry locked it walked into the corridor, joining the dozens of other students.

The train platform was dark and cold and Harry shivered wondering where he was supposed to go. A loud voice called for the first years and Harry joined his year mates in following a gigantic man to a group of boats. A funny thing happened when Harry caught his first sight of Hogwarts. Unlike the rest of his classmates, Harry wasn't awed by the view, but felt a sense of déjà vu, like he had already seen it. Confused, Harry joined a pink-faced girl in blond pigtails and a girl with long red hair in a boat. Harry was silent as they sailed across the lake while the two girls quietly conversed. Of to his side, he could see Tracey waving at him while she shared a boat with Daphne and a tall, dark-skinned boy.

After getting out of the boats in an underground harbor, the giant lead them up a set of stone steps where they were meet by an tall, older woman with a stern look; Professor McGonagall. Harry had a funny feeling that he would see her yelling at Richard a lot during his stay at Hogwarts, assuming he survived his first year. She led them into a side room off the Great Hall and gave them a little speech about the Sorting, then left. Everyone around Harry was nervous about the Sorting and how it was done; even Daphne was showing signs of being afraid. Again Harry felt weird because he knew he was nervous, but at the same time he felt like he had nothing to worry about; it was just a hat, though he had no idea how he knew that.

Harry stayed silent, too nervous about not being Sorted because he was a Squib to speak. He, along with about a half dozen others, scoffed at Ron's idea of being Sorted by taking on a troll. A good deal of other however, believed him and were talking with one another. After a minute, but it felt like hours, Professor McGonagall returned and led them into the Great Hall. Again, Harry was confused as he should've been awed by the magical ceiling in the Great Hall, but it didn't concern him one bit. He even ignored some girl in front of him talking about it.

Looking up at the Teacher's Table, Harry looked at everyone seated. He could see little Professor Flitwick a couple seats to Dumbledore's left. When the old headmaster saw Harry, he sent a small smile his way before resuming his examination of the other first years. Three seats away on Dumbledore's right was Severus Snape. Like everyone else in the Hall, Severus was examining the new students and when he saw Harry, he gave a little start of surprise. Harry sent his uncle a smile before turning back to McGonagall explain the Sorting and the hat's song. Harry largely ignored the Sorting, though he did notice Tracey, Daphne, and Malfoy all go into Slytherin. Finally, Professor McGonagall reached the Ps.

"Potter, Richard!"

As the Hall burst into quiet buzzing, Harry got lost in thought. H came before R so his name should've been called first, not Richard's. Harry was too busy thinking and almost missed out the hat shouting Gryffindor almost immediately, to great applause. Deciding it was a simple mistake; Harry prepared to step forward when his name was called. It didn't come. Harry just stood there as Ron Weasley became a Gryffindor too and then Blaise Zabini, the boy in Tracey's boat, became a Slytherin. Harry was really confused and scared now; why hadn't his name been called? Had his father done something to prevent him from being accepted? Had Dumbledore changed his mind? Harry wasn't the only one confused; everyone in the Great Hall was staring at Harry, wondering why his name wasn't being called. At last, Dumbledore stood up.

"It is my great pleasure," he began, "to announce that at last, a Squib has been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Harry felt his cheeks burn, he hadn't thought that everything would be announced so publicly. The buzzing started again, this time an angry buzzing. How could a Squib be accepted into Hogwarts?

"Harry Potter!" Dumbledore called.

Harry did his best to ignore all the stares that followed him up to the stool but it didn't work. Just as the hat was being lowered over his eyes, Harry caught sight of a glaring Daphne seated next to a shocked Tracey.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. You are no doubt one of the hardest students I've every placed. And a Squib too, that's interesting."

Harry suddenly felt a lot of angry at that comment. Taking all of the hatred he received from his father, brother, and the rest of the school, combined with the unfairness of having his magic taken away, Harry thought hard, _I'm not a Squib_!

"Not a Squib, eh?" replied the voice. "Yes, I can see the truth in your head; the victim of a magic transfer ritual. You're not a true Squib at all, are you? But still, you are very difficult to sort so let's look deeper. You have plenty of courage I see, and a thirst for knowledge, but that's because of your Squib status. You're loyal to those who earn it, namely your sister and Professor Snape, but you don't trust easily, do you? But what's this? You have a high level of ambition; planning to take back your magic are you? That's going to be difficult, if not outright impossible."

While this was going on, everyone who knew what a Squib was was praying that Harry wouldn't end up in their house, what an embarrassment; while those who didn't, namely most of the muggle-borns, asked those around them what a Squib was. Meanwhile, the Sorting Hat was still considering where to put Harry.

"Hmm, you could go into any of the houses quite well, that's what makes this so difficult. Oh, I see, you have the gift; well that changes things a little."

Harry suddenly knew that the hat had found out about his ability to speak Parseltongue.

"And one more thing, though it's very deep. Ah, I found it! Oh my, well that settles it. I don't know how, but you've been granted a wondrous but terrible gift. I hope you use those memories well and remember what happened to their owner. SLYTHERIN!"

Harry was pondering the hat's words and almost missed his house's name. The rest of the Great Hall however, heard it just fine. The older Slytherin's mouths dropped, a Squib in their house? The rest of the houses were thinking, a Squib in Slytherin, a non-magical person in the house of blood-purity, it was laughable. As such, almost three-quarters of the school laughed. Harry made his way to his new house, a dozen thoughts passing through his head at a time. He wondered what his father would say; he probably was torn from being thankful that Harry hadn't disgraced his own noble house of Gryffindor and cursing Harry for going into the 'dark' house.

As Harry approached the Slytherin Table, those closest to him scooted further down the table, away from him, leaving at least two seats between him and the closest person. It might have been a little tight and uncomfortable, but it was better than sitting next to the filthy Squib. Harry just stared sadly at his plate, feeling incredibly lonely.

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><p><strong>Once again, thank-you for all the reviews. The Dark Lady will be revealed next chapter so keep telling me who you want. Something else about her, two people asked for Hermione and another asked for Rose. A reminder, the Dark Lady must be pure or half blood, no muggle-borns. Also, this the first time I considered Rose, Harry's sister, as his Dark Lady. May I remind you that the Dark Lady will be Harry's girl; so Rose, interesting but no. <strong>


	5. The First Week

**K, I think some people might have been confused when I said that I would reveal the Dark Lady this chapter. I'm guess many of you thought that the lady would be apart of the story; sorry, I'm just going to reveal her in the author's note. So, here we go.**

**In last place with one vote; Gabby Delacour. Normally I would reject her, but someone voted for her even though I said she had to be within two years of Harry.**

**In fifth place, with one vote each; Pansy Parkinson and Rose Potter. I'm surprised about Pansy, I never would've thought of her myself. As for Rose, I believe I already talked about how I _wouldn't_ make her Harry's girl.**

**In fourth place, with two votes each; Susan Bones, Hermione Granger, and Ginny Weasley. I already talked about how I'm not going to do Hermione, but if you all want Susan and Ginny on Harry's side, just tell me. **

**In third place, with three votes; Tracey Davis. Of course you all would vote for her, she's Harry's first friend. I'm just surprised that she didn't get more votes.**

**In second place, with twelve votes; the crazy, but wonderful, Luna Lovegood. Again, I'm not surprised that you voted for her. As I'm sure many of you are disappointed that she's not Harry's girl, I'll make her one of his good friends. I'm already planning something special for her.**

**And finally, the one you're all been waiting for. The girl who's going to be Harry's Dark Lady with nineteen votes; Daphne Greengrass. I've always enjoyed this pairing, I think it's actually my favorite, don't know why. Anyways, Daphne is going to be Harry's girl but don't expect it for a couple of years as there are some things that will stop them and they have to over come before they can start dating. **

**Now that the Dark Lady vote is out of the way, on with the story.**

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><p><em><span>The First Week<span>_

_September 1, 1991 Great Hall, Hogwarts Castle_

As much of the school laughed at Slytherin's misfortune, many people were thinking various thoughts. Richard was pleased that Harry had gone to Slytherin, it meant that he was out of the way. There really was no other house for Harry; he, Richard, was the smarter brother, too smart for Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff just wasn't the place for the Boy-Who-Lived, so that left the best house ever, noble Gryffindor. Slytherin was just full of dark, evil little snakes that would join You-Know-Who when he returned. And when he did, Richard would defeat him again and all the other little snakes that joined him, then Slytherin house would be removed from Hogwarts at long last.

Minerva McGonagall and Filius Flitwick were shocked. They had known that Harry was a Squib, they had been to his mother's funeral, but never had they imagined that he would attend Hogwarts. Dumbledore hadn't even announced to the staff that a Squib would attend this year, this was the first they heard about it. Severus Snape's cold face was waging a furious battle; on one hand he was happy that the boy he had come to love like an almost-son was Sorted in his house, but on the other, he was just as embarrassed as the rest of his house that a Squib had joined them.

Albus Dumbledore was calculating. He felt sorry for young Harry. Although he had no prejudices, he knew that the surviving Death Eaters that had children had installed a sense of blood purity in them, and most of those children were in Slytherin. That wasn't to say the other houses didn't have blood supremacists in them, he knew for a fact that his own Gryffindor had one or two, but the majority were in Slytherin. He had examined the boy and believed him to be a studious lad, one that would be perfect for Ravenclaw, who would stop judging him when they saw how smart he was. Hufflepuff wouldn't have been too bad for the boy, Severus had told him how polite the lad had been when apologizing for a prank he had done. Really, the worst house Harry Potter could've gotten was Slytherin, he just hoped that Severus looked out for the boy.

Draco Malfoy was furious. He had previously met the boy on the train and had sort-of liked him. He showed that he didn't really follow the blood traitors and hung out with some of the right sort of wizards and witches. He even didn't like his brother Richard, which Draco had hoped would allow his father an open spot for when the Dark Lord returned. But to find out the boy was a Squib and was in his house! Draco counted himself lucky that he hadn't shaken the Squib's hand. He would write his father as soon as possible and he would correct this outrage.

Tracey and Daphne were a mixture of shock, anger, and fear. Tracey had been nervous around the boy when they first met. At first she thought he was a muggle-born, but their conversation had fixed that. She wasn't prejudiced like most of her house was, but she didn't think a Squib in Slytherin was a good idea. When she was sorted into Slytherin house, she remembered the nice boy she met on the train and prayed that he was in her house too, but when Richard Potter was sorted, Tracey became confused. Now she didn't know whether to keep his friendship or not. Daphne on the other hand, was leaning more towards Draco's side. She had thought something was off during his explanation of why they didn't know about him. At first she thought it was because his surname wasn't really Potter or that he wasn't related to Richard. Now it made sense. Although the Greengrasses didn't hate muggles or muggle-borns, like most of the purebloods they didn't like Squibs one bit. She planned to stay as far away from this Squib as possible.

As Professor Dumbledore stood up, the Hall quieted their laughter. He stared at them all with a slight frown, not liking the laughter at Harry's or Slytherin's misfortune. After a few seconds, his frown turned into a small smile and he welcomed everyone either back or to Hogwarts. Then, after saying his few, quick, carefully selected random words, the Welcoming Feast began. The moment the food appeared, the Slytherin first years grabbed as much as they could before Harry could get to it. Alone at the very end of the table, Harry tried to get what food he could, but the Slytherins weren't very welcoming. He only ended up with a baked potato the size of an apple, three peas, a carrot, and a piece of burned bread. When dessert came around, Harry was only able to steal one small peppermint before the rest disappeared. During the Feast, the other Slytherins talked with each other but turned their backs to Harry so that couldn't see him or have him talk with them. Miserable, Harry prayed for the Feast to end quickly.

Unfortunately, Murphy's Law applied to the magical world as well; no matter how fast you want something to pass, time moved at the speed of a snail while the slower you wanted something to pass, the quicker it ended. After what felt like days, the Feast finally ended and Harry, with his stomach still growling from hunger, stood up with the rest of the Slytherins. They pushed him to the back of the line and moved quickly, hoping to lose him in the many halls of Hogwarts. Fortunately for Harry, he just barely managed to keep up and caught up with them in time to hear the password to the Slytherin dorms.

The Slytherin Common room was large, cold, and dark. Black stone was the walls, floor, and ceiling, while a dim greenish light illuminated the room. On the back wall, Harry could see several large windows that showed a large body of water, possibly the lake they sailed across earlier. The room was mostly empty, only a few older students remained to watch the first years crowd around Gemma Farley, a female Prefect, and listen to her explain the house rules.

"All right, listen up you all. Welcome to Slytherin House, the best house at Hogwarts, though the other houses don't agree. While you are in this house, you will respect each other as the other houses don't like us and we need to show a unified front. While friendships in other houses aren't discouraged, don't expect them to last long. Slytherin has a long, noble history though the other houses see us as dark. They conveniently forget that one of our greatest and most famous members was Merlin himself. Anyone," she turned towards Malfoy "who damages our reputation," she turned towards Harry "will suffer the consequences. Now, go to bed."

She pointed the girls towards one stairway and the boys the other and left. When Harry tried to go up the boys' staircase, he was shoved back by Crabbe and Goyle while an older boy sent a stinging hex at him. Harry tried to ignore the pain in his left arm as he waited for everyone else to leave the common room. It was close to midnight when an extremely tired Harry climbed the stair to the boys dorm. His trunk was off to the side, apparently one of the boys tried to move it and met his security system. Trying to make as little noise as possible, Harry dragged his trunk back to the only bad available and opened it so that Apollo and Artemis could exit.

_{So what house are you in Harry, and why so late in letting us out?}_ Apollo said with an annoyed hiss.

_{Shh, not so loud. I'm in Slytherin, though the others don't like me too much.} _

_{Good for you Harry on making Slytherin}_ Artemis's hiss was quieter than her brothers, obviously she knew that Harry wanted them to be quiet so that they didn't wake the other boys.

Smiling at his friends, Harry changed into his pajamas and crawled into his bed and tried to sleep. Unfortunately, the stinging hex on his arm and his fears of the other boys kept him awake most of the night. Harry awoke early the next morning, before any of the other boys woke up. Rushing through his shower and getting dressed, Harry bid farewell to Apollo and Artemis, who were still asleep, and rushed out of the common room before anyone discovered him and decided to use him as target practice. All throughout his walk to the Great Hall, Harry thought about how he would survive living in Slytherin and how maybe going to Hogwarts wasn't the best idea after all.

He had just sat down for breakfast when a thought hit him. Last night he had focused entirely on catching up with the other Slytherins that he hadn't paid any attention to where he was going. He also hadn't paid any attention to where he was going this morning. So how had he gotten to the Great Hall without getting lost once? As he was thinking, he felt a pair of eyes on him. Looking up, he saw Tracey Davis sitting across from him. Harry thought this was odd as she was one of the people that prevented him from getting any food last night.

"How did a Squib like you get into Slytherin?"

Angry over that fact that she called him a Squib and because of the way she treated him last night, Harry snapped at her. "I'm no Squib."

She laughed at him. "You have no magic, of course you're a Squib."

"My brother has my magic. After Voldemort's (Tracey flinched) attack, my parents transferred my magic to him. I wasn't born a Squib, I was made one. I had my magic stolen from me!"

Tracey stared at him for a few seconds before standing up and walking away. Harry was angry, angry at everyone. No more would anyone call him a Squib. Harry remembered how Tracey had flinched at Voldemort's name. Unlike the rest of the wizarding world, Harry didn't fear the name, growing up with and taught by his mother had fixed that. Rose and Richard still feared the name though. As Harry ate, more students slowly fill the Great Hall. Like last night, the other Slytherins tried to sit as far away from Harry as possible. Last night, Harry was at the end of the table closest to the High Table, this morning he was seating at the place at the table that was closest to the doors, on the opposite end.

Near the end of breakfast, Professor Snape walked around the table handing out schedules for all of his students. When he reached Harry, he paused for a couple seconds before giving him his schedule and a pitying smile. Looking at his schedule, Harry saw Professor Dumbledore was right, he was only taking Potions, Herbology, Astronomy, History of Magic, and Muggle Studies. Harry's first class was Muggles Studies, but it wasn't until second period, his first was a break. Not wanting to waste any time, Harry headed towards the library and began to research magical theory. He found that the library kept a couple copies of all of the required books for all years in a side section of the library, so Harry started there.

By the end of the break, Harry had filled one of his notebooks all about magical theory and fully understood it. It wasn't hard as he had started this in August. Harry then made his way towards the Muggle Studies classroom and immediately felt out of place. There was only one other Slytherin in that class and he wasn't paying any attention to Harry, all the others were Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, and Gryffindors. The teacher, a male muggle-born, didn't like Harry one bit and singled him out from the very start. By the end of the class, Harry felt worse than he did that morning. He once again had a large break until Herbology after lunch so he went back to the library.

Herbology was better and he received some fair treatment from Professor Sprout. It was a slightly easy class as they learned how to identify and take care of a handful of magical plants and fungi. After Herbology, Harry returned to the library to do more research in the subject. When he returned to the common room a half hour before dinner, he was met by the entire Slytherin house. Although a good portion of the house decided Harry was beneath their notice, a fair number sent no less than twenty spells his way, most of which Harry was just barely able to avoid. In his dorm room, Harry updated Apollo and Artemis on his day.

Tuesday was mostly the same; Herbology before lunch and double History of Magic after. The most interesting thing that day came during the lunch period when a tall, aristocratic man with long blond hair stormed into the Hall and walked up to Dumbledore. The two exchanged quiet, heated words before leaving the Hall. As the two left, Harry saw Malfoy smirk up at the man and knew that it was his father. Surprisingly, History of Magic wasn't as bad as Harry had thought. Although the ghost Professor Binns was boring, unlike the rest of his class, Harry didn't fall asleep and managed to stay awake the entire class. Though, that didn't stop Harry from sneaking funny glances at a snoring Tracey or a drooling Daphne, who left the class not knowing that half of the notes she managed to write down before falling asleep were now on her left cheek.

During dinner, Malfoy looked really upset and kept sending deathly glares Harry's way. Whatever Mr. Malfoy and Professor Dumbledore had discussed, it hadn't gone the way Mr. Malfoy wanted. The next morning, a copy of the _Daily Prophet _came out with the title of _A Squib at Hogwarts_. That was quickly followed by a Howler from James about how Harry had disgraced the Potter family by being a Squib and being Sorted into Slytherin. Wednesday was a repeat of Monday, Muggle Studies in the morning and Herbology in the afternoon. Dinner was followed by a long break before Astronomy at night. The only class for Harry on Thursday was History of Magic in the morning and so spent most of his afternoon in the dorms. As such, he was there to hear the rest of the first years complain about how useless a stuttering Professor Quirrell was in Double Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Friday was the day Harry was most looking forward to; Double Potions with Professor Snape. Although Harry heard that Snape favored the Slytherins, he didn't want to take any chances about being singled out and studied heavily. This was also to show Uncle Severus that he had continued studying in Potions after Lily's death. Snape started the class by taking role and pausing at both Harry's and Richard's names, though he gave Harry a smile and Richard a sneer. Then then gave a speech about Potions making.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even stopper death— if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

Harry was fully ready to show that he wasn't a dunderhead.

"Potter!" Snape called suddenly.

"Yes?" both Harry and Richard called.

Snape smirked and corrected himself. "Gryffindor Potter. What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Richard glanced at his friend Ron while a girl with bushy hair thrust her hand high in the air. Harry thought Snape was being slightly unfair. Although he knew the answer it was because he had _A Beginners' Guide to Potion Making_. It was in the back and was only mentioned because it was a popular potion. It was also mention in the introduction of their Potions book because of it, but hardly anybody read that part.

"I don't know." Richard said with a smirk.

Snape's smirk widened. "Tut, tut — fame clearly isn't everything. Let's try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?"

Harry knew this one, bezoars were mentioned in the very first chapter which talked about safety measures.

"A Potions cupboard sir?"

Snape wasn't amused. While most of the Gryffindor's were snickering, Snape's smirk turned into a frown. He walked straight up to Richard's desk and stood right in front of it.

"Incorrect. One last try, what is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

Trick question, Harry thought. Again they were mentioned in both of his books, but only near the middle. He knew all of this was to make Richard look bad as both he and Snape knew that Richard would never willingly open a book.

"I don't know, maybe their color?"

Harry couldn't help himself, he snorted in laughter at Richard's ignorance. Snape heard him and turned his way.

"Incorrect again, Potter. Twenty points from Gryffindor for your wrong answers and your cheek. But your brother thinks he knows the answers so why don't we try him."

All eyes turned towards Harry. He knew that they all were expecting him to fail. Smirking, Harry began his answer.

"Asphodel and wormwood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death, sir. A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it will save you from most poisons. As for monkshood and wolfsbane, they are the same plant, which also goes by the name of aconite."

The entire class was now looking at Harry in shock. Snape's frown turned into a smile.

"Correct, take twenty points. Well, well, well, how does it feel Gryffindor Potter, to know that your Squib brother knows more than you do. How embarrassing."

All the Slytherins snickered at Richard's embarrassment. Harry caught Daphne's eye and she nodded towards him in silent respect. They then were spilt into pairs, except Harry because no one would work with him, to work on a Potion that cured boils. Harry got himself quite a bit of attention from the rest of the class as Snape praised his work up and down, saying he was the best student he ever had. Harry was pleased with himself and silently laughed when Richard, disgusted by Harry's success, melted his own cauldron which cost Gryffindor ten points. They lost a further ten when Neville Longbottom, the boy who lost his toad on the Hogwarts Express, also melted his cauldron. Richard again got blamed. By the end of the class, Slytherin had gained thirty points while Gryffindor lost fifty, curtsy of Harry and Richard respectively.

Harry's good mood was ruined in Muggle Studies after lunch when Professor Quimble embarrassed Harry in front of the entire class. It was further embarrassing when Lucas, the Slytherin, told about and acted out Harry's embarrassment in the Slytherin common room after dinner. His mood wasn't helped any more by Richard, who decided to get some revenge for Potions class. The brothers ran into each other while heading for dinner that night.

"Hello Harry, how was your week? Did you learn any good spells…oh wait, I forgot. You're a Squib! You wouldn't lean any spells. In fact, you wouldn't learn anything of use here, you should just drop out and go to the muggle world where you belong."

Laughing, Richard turned and went to the Gryffindor table, joined by Ron, Seamus, and Dean, all laughing heavily. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see a couple of Slytherins, including Tracey and Daphne, who didn't come to Harry's defense. It was a toss-up who was more hated by Slytherin house, Harry or Richard. This was how the second week passed as well, with Harry going to only a handful of classes and spending his free time either in the library doing research or in his dorm talking Potions with Apollo or Herbology with Artemis. The more time Harry spent researching, the faster he learned things, almost like he was remembering them. He also spent a good amount of time dodging spells from members of all houses. Harry was happy that no magic was allowed in the corridors.

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><p><strong>I noticed something when counting up all the votes. The majority of the reveiws were spent telling me who the Dark Lady should be, but no one answered some other questions I asked in the first chapter. What I want to know is who should be on Harry's side. Draco, Daphne, Rose and Luna are now a must and Ron and Hermione are a no, but who else should for with and against Harry. Tell me who you want and if they get enough votes, they'll join Harry or side against him. Read, review, and vote.<strong>


	6. Challenges and Friends

**There are two things I want everyone to know for now. First, FanFiction was acting weird this morning so I was unable to update when I wanted. Second, because I'm behind in all stories except this one, I'm taking a break from this story. I'll still update regularly, but only about once every two or three weeks unlike my usual once every week. I'll go back to my regular schedule after I am all caught up with the rest of my stories.**

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><p><em><span>Challenges and Friends<span>_

Slowly, Harry got used to his life at Hogwarts. Muggle Studies was horrible, Herbology was normal, Astronomy was tiring, History was boring, and Potions was fun. The time Harry spent between meals, classes, the library, and his time in the dorm was spent dodging spells from nearly every house. Harry slowly gained a reputation of being the best brewer in Potions and the only one who was immune from the sleep spell that was Professor Binns' voice. Because of this, Harry gained some small amount of respect in Slytherin for his brewing and a couple of people a week asked for copies of Harry's History notes as they fell asleep trying to take their own.

Those that respected Harry or those that borrowed from him were among the very few who didn't try to hex or curse him every time they saw him, and for that Harry was grateful. He had started compiling a list of those who were safe and those to watch out for. Being a target was really starting to get to him. He spent as much time in the library and the Great Hall as was possible to avoid having to meet someone in the halls. Even in the common room Harry wasn't safe so he stayed out as late as possible and left really early in the mornings to avoid the rest of the house. As a result, Harry didn't get much sleep at night so he spent some of his free time napping in the library. He really needed to get his own room to protect himself. Apollo and Artemis were even starting to complain about how they too had to hide all the time.

Luckily for Harry, he was able to find something to solve their problems Friday of the second week. While everyone was out of the dorms celebrating the end of the week in the afternoon, Harry was in the Slytherin common room with Artemis and Apollo; they were finally able to explore the dorm as they wished. While Artemis was examining some of the couches, Apollo found a section on the far side of the common room interesting. All that was over there was a large poster of the Slytherin crest from the floor to nearly the ceiling. Curious as to why Apollo found that spot so interesting, Harry walked over the examine it.

_{Harry, there's something behind here.}_ Apollo said with great wonder.

Artemis now joined them and concluded that her brother was right; something was hidden behind the wall. Harry carefully examined the wall, but found nothing until his eyes found the dark green of the snake's. Suddenly, he was assaulted by a flash of information, like a memory or vision. It provided him with a password that would open up the wall and lead into a large room with a four poster bed, a small library, personal bathroom, and a study desk. As soon as the vision/memory ended, Harry again locked eyes with the snake and spoke the password he was provided.

_{Your heir demands entrance.}_

The wall slide open, revealing the room Harry had seen. The room looked similar to the common room and dorm, but it also had the feeling of comfortableness. The bed was softer than those in the dorm, the bathroom was more spacious and provided unlimited hot water, the library held books on every subject taught at Hogwarts. The room was everything Harry needed and wanted so he quickly moved his trunk from his old dorm into the room. Apollo and Artemis loved the room too as they didn't have to hide and were able to get in and out with ease. This hidden new room was now Harry's.

The rest of the Slytherin's were surprised when after dinner, the hated Squib strolled into the common room without a care in the world and walked over to the crest. They were even more surprised when he made a hissing sound, which many recognized as Parseltongue, and the wall opened up to show a beautiful new dorm. Harry enjoyed seeing the shocked, and even scared looks, of his fellow classmates as his walked into his new room. He spent a good five minutes working on his Muggle Studies homework before a knocking sound came from the direction of the door. Curious, Harry opened it to reveal Alexander Kramps, the Head Boy and unofficial King of Slytherin House.

"You're in the Heir's Dorm." He spoke in a strange tone that took Harry only a couple of seconds to realize was fear. Although he was the biggest, smartest, and most dangerous person in the house, he did fear someone who could speak Parseltongue. "That Dorm is reserved for only the best Slytherin student."

"So?" Harry asked, also a little afraid.

"You're a Squib, which means that not only do you not belong in this house, but that's _my_ dorm you're in. Get out of it."

Harry's eyes narrowed, he would not let this boy have his dorm, no matter how scared he was of him. "Make me." he hissed.

Though Harry didn't know it, his eyes flashed as he said these words. Alexander flinched slightly at that and hesitated in drawing his wand. This hesitation cost him however as Harry saw it.

_{STOP!}_

Although Alexander didn't understand what Harry said, he did what he was told. Unknown to the both of them however, it was more than fear the caused Alexander to stop moving, something that came from Harry himself. Smiling at the terrified look on Alexander's face, Harry quickly closed the door to the dorm. After that, no one challenged Harry for the Heir's Dorm again though they had no idea that Harry was extremely scared that they would force him to give it up. Indeed, he had nearly surrendered to Alexander.

One Thursday in late September, a notice went up in the Slytherin common room announcing that flying lessons would begin that afternoon. Harry didn't feel too good as he knew that Richard had learned how to fly since he was six and would tease Harry about his horrible flying along with the rest of the Slytherins. Knowing this, Harry delayed going to flying lessons for as long as possible, nearly ending up late. As a result, he took the last spot available between an upset Daphne and Malfoy across from an excited, yet nervous, Hermione Granger. Richard was further down the line, bragging about how good he was. Finally Madam Hooch arrived and the lesson began.

"Well, what are you all waiting for? Stand next to a broomstick, hold out your right hand and say 'Up!'"

Everyone did as she said except Harry, who had to personally reach down to pick up his broom, nearly getting wacked by Daphne's broom as it zoomed up from the ground. He sent a glare her way as she smirked. Madam Hooch then showed everyone how to mount a broom and then went around correcting everyone, Harry earning a complement for his correct posture while Malfoy was told he was doing it wrong and had done so for years. They then prepared to jump up and hover for a bit but never got the change. Neville was so nervous that he jumped too early and shot straight up into the air. He screamed and rocketed around for a bit until he finally fell back to the ground, breaking his wrist.

As soon as Madam Hooch and Neville were out of sight, the Slytherins started laughing their heads off, Harry included. He couldn't help himself, the sight was too funny. The other Slytherins didn't care that Harry was laughing with them and one or two smirked at him. Harry was finally starting to feel a part of a group when Malfoy ruined it for him.

"Did you see his face, the great lump? I'm surprised that a Squib like him even made it into Hogwarts."

Harry stopped laughing. Malfoy must have forgotten about Harry, but Richard hadn't.

"Neville may not be able to do much, but at least he can do _some_ magic. You're the house with the Squib in it."

The Gryffindors started laughing as the Slytherins stopped. The two houses glared at one another. Harry, angry at his brother, stepped forward.

"I'm not a Squib! You know that and the reason why."

Richard just smirked. "You weren't worthy of magic, that's why I got yours."

Harry's anger grew at Richard's practical confession of magic theft. A couple Slytherins whispered between each other at that statement. "I'm ten times more deserving of magic than you!"

"Oh really?" Richard said, cocking his head to the side. "Let's find out, shall we?" He stepped forward and pointed out a ways. "We're going to race out all the way to the edge of the forest and back, first one to get back is the winner, got it?"

Harry nodded.

"And to make things a little more interesting," said Malfoy, also stepping forward, "you also have to catch this." He held up a little glass ball, a Remembrall.

"Very well," agreed Richard. "First one back and to catch the Remembrall is the winner."

He stepped up to where the starting line would be and mounted his broom. Harry moved to join him but Malfoy held him back.

"If you win this," he said, "I'll get the rest of the house to lay off you for a bit. But if you fail, I'll make sure that everyone sees to it you wish you had never heard of Hogwarts"

Harry didn't know if Malfoy was being serious or even if he had that kind of power but said, "It's my brother. Of _course_ I'm going to beat him. Just stand back and make sure you chuck that Remembrall as hard as you can."

Lining up even with his brother, Harry also mounted his broom and got ready. Most of the Gryffindors lined up on Richard's side, ready to cheer him one while the Slytherins stood by Harry. It would be the first time they accepted Harry as a member of their house and cheered him on. A select few hung back, not willing to agree to this contest or didn't want to cheer for Harry. Malfoy stood a ways in front of the two Potters and held up his right hand. Looking at the two boys, he smirked and brought his hand down fast.

Richard took off, Harry not far behind him. Richard had the experience and took an early lead, but Harry was smart. Hanging just behind him so that he was catching Richard's tailwind, Harry met little resistance. With the wind blowing in his ear, Harry was amazed at how well the broom responded to him. With the forest fast approaching, Harry got ready. Richard, not slowing down, took the turn at a wide angle while Harry did slow and was able to quickly head back towards the school, this time in the lead.

Richard's wide arc delayed him and caused Harry to pull ahead a couple of inches until Richard corrected himself and slowly caught up. They were halfway back when Richard pulled up even and then pulled a dirty trick. Sticking his leg out, he kicked Harry off course. Harry managed to correct himself, though it gave Richard the time he needed to take the lead. Once again Harry found himself following Richard's tailwind and using it to his advantage. With little drag to hold him back, Harry gained on Richard and began to hold his arm out to pull on Richard's broom when he suddenly changed course. With a start, Harry realized they had reached Hogwarts and Malfoy had just launched the Remembrall.

It took a quick glance for Harry to see that Malfoy had cheated both him and Richard. The Remembrall had been tossed a good distance but at too low an arc; it would crash into the ground before either of them reached it. Richard, seeing this, pulled back and made his way towards the ground. Harry however, was determined to show them all and gave chase. He though he heard a scream as he raced towards the ground but he was too focused to really notice or care. Pointing his broom at the steepest angle he could, Harry fought to beat the little glass ball to the ground. Adjusting the angle slightly and leaning forward, Harry just barely managed to catch the ball inches before it hit the ground.

Again trying to change his angle, Harry found that he was going too fast and leaned back as far as he could. He felt the end of the broom and his shoes drag along the grass before he raised a couple of inches. Slowing down, Harry turned back towards his class. He only got a few feet before, tired, he slipped over the side of his broom which also broke in two. Luckily he was going slow and was only an inch or two from the ground so he landed softly. Dizzy, Harry stood up and found himself a couple feet from his class. Grinning widely, Harry held the Remembrall high in the air for all to see. Every single Slytherin cheered at the sight of the little ball in Harry's right hand and a couple slapped him on the back as he got closer. Malfoy had a small smirk and gave a short nod while Richard looked absolutely furious.

Looking around, Harry saw a couple of wide eyes looking at him, but also a handful of Slytherins teasing Richard for being beaten by a Squib. The sight of Tracey however, caught Harry's eye. Her face was covered in fresh nail marks and her terrified eyes never left Harry for a second. His joy at earning his classmates respect and finally beating Richard was short lived however as Professor McGonagall stomped towards them, her eyes blazing. Not one Slytherin came to Harry's defense as she tore into him for flying without an instructor present and for his extremely foolish and dangerous dive. She also yelled at Richard a bit, but not as much as Harry. A handful of Gryffindors even tried to tell her that it was all Harry's idea and that he had threatened Richard to compete, though one or two looked like they wanted to correct them.

She then marched them back towards the castle and into her office. Once there, she again yelled at them for their foolish flying ideas before subtracting twenty points each. Harry was then dismissed with a detention for being in possession of a stolen artifact, dangerous flying, and breaking a school broom while Richard was held behind as McGonagall wanted to talk to him specially. Leaving the Remembrall with McGonagall, Harry sadly made his way back to the Slytherin Dungeons. Once there, he began thinking about how unfair his life was while Artemis comforted him. Harry's sad musings were interrupted a few minutes later by Snape. With a blank face, he told Harry to follow him to his office. Afraid at being given another talking to as well as getting into more trouble, Harry followed with great fear.

Once in Snape's office, he sat down behind the desk and stared at Harry for a few moments. After a while of silence, he asked Harry to explain what had happened during the flying lesson. Sparing no detail, Harry told him all about Neville falling, Richard's challenge, his cheating, the race, Harry's catch, the result, and finally Professor McGonagall's punishment. When he finished talking, Harry looked down while Snape closed his eyes in thought. When he finally opened them, he gave Harry a soft look.

"First off Harry," he began, "I want to congratulate you on both not backing down from your brother's challenge and succeeding in it. Second, you did a good thing by not cheating yourself; it shows that you are fairer than your brother and are able to beat him when he's cheating and you're not. Know this, in real life, there is no such thing in cheating. While we Slytherins don't play fair with the rest of the school, we know that out there in the real world, fair play doesn't exist, so we adapt ourselves to it."

Harry smiled, Snape's praise felt a lot like his mother's all those years ago. It helped eliminate some of his fear. Snape continued.

"For his part in the challenge, Richard has been made the new Gryffindor Seeker. McGonagall recognizes the talent that your father passed on to him as well as the skill his possesses. After a brief talk with Dumbledore, he had decided to bend the rules and allow Richard to participate, something I tried to argue against too little effect. However, I was able to get a small victory. Unable to accept the possibility of my team losing to Minerva's after four years, I managed to persuade Dumbledore, in the spirit of fairness, to allow you to become our new Seeker, that is, if you want it."

Harry was speechless, the chance to play for Slytherin in the Quidditch Cup? Of course he would accept it. The possibility of beating Richard again may have had a factor in his decision as well. Harry nodded vigorously, unable to keep the happiness off of his face. Snape smiled.

"Very well, I'll inform the Captain Flint of your new position. You will report for your first practice Saturday evening. I will also inform the rest of the Team that they are to not curse you so that our chances aren't affected. I wish you luck."

Harry thanked Snape and left the office practically skipping. He was on the House Team, and as a first year, it had never been done before. Not to mention that Harry was now protected from all manners of spells, curses, and hexes now, at least from the Slytherins. He was so happy that he didn't notice Tracey Davis standing alone outside the common room, nearly running her over. Opening his mouth to apologize, Tracey held up her hand.

"Wait." Harry closed his mouth. "I want to apologize for the way I treated you these past couple of weeks. It's just that, well, I'm a half-blood; my mother's a muggle-born so I feel like I'm inferior to everyone else. Then, when you were revealed a Squib, I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders, you would attract more attention as a Squib than I would as a half-blood, so I went along with the crowd to keep them off of me. I was horrible to you, even though I felt like you were my first friend except for Daphne and when I saw you competing, I realized how horrible I've been, and so, I'm sorry."

Tracey looked down at the ground while Harry just stared at her in shock. Tracey Davis was apologizing, to him, a Squib? Remembering how much fun they had on the train and thinking of how much he wanted a human friend at Hogwarts, Harry accepted her apology and gave his for nearly running her over. Smiling, the two new friends entered the common room. Tracey was an excellent friend for Harry. She became his new Herbology partner while he gave her his notes in History, where she fell asleep faster than you could blink. Daphne, Tracey's other friend, didn't spend any time with Harry at all, mostly glaring at him while he and Tracey were together. As such, Tracey was forced to split her time with her two friends, though she spent most of her time with Daphne after Harry persuaded her to.

The next couple of days the school was filled by stories about how Harry had beaten Richard in a broom race. This was quickly over shadowed by the fact that somehow it had been found out that Richard had been made Gryffindor's new Seeker. Even more surprising was that Harry's new position hadn't made its way out of the dungeons at all. The Slytherins mostly left Harry alone; whether this was from Malfoy's promise, Harry's flying ability, or the fact that he was the new Seeker didn't matter to him one bit. The few Slytherins that did bother him were some of the older ones who threatened harm if Harry failed his first Quidditch Match. These included Harry's fellow members of the Slytherin Quidditch Team. On their very first practice, Marcus Flint, the Captain, pulled Harry aside.

"Professor Snape may have told us that we aren't allowed to curse or hex you during practice, but that doesn't mean that we can't outside of it. If you fail to catch the Snitch in our first game, me and the rest of the team will curse you so bad that you can't fly again."

With that threat firmly in his mind, Harry focused hard during the practice, surprising Flint with his flying skills. However, just because spells weren't allowed, that didn't mean Bludgers too. Harry spent half of his first practice dodging the two Bludgers left, right, and center. So much time in fact, that Flint had to order the Beaters to focus on the rest of the team too after the Chasers were hit by the Bludgers for the sixth time. After a couple of minutes, Harry got an idea. Signaling Flint for a time-out, he flew back towards the ground.

"What is it Potter?"

"I've got an idea that I think that you'll love. See, I know that you all still want to curse me and that you need the Beaters to focus on the Bludgers and not me."

"Get to the point will you and stop wasting our time."

"How about for most of the practice, the Beaters stay with you, the Keeper, and the other Chasers and leave me focusing on the Snitch. Then, in the last couple of minutes of practice, you four can take a break and have the Beaters try and knock me off of my broom with the Bludgers. You can even cast spells at me. This way, will all get practice in what we need, you guys can vent your frustration at me and practice your spell-work, and I can practice dodging things. If I can dodge two Bludgers and four to six spells at a time, think about how well I'll do during the game?"

After a short time thinking, and some persuasion from the rest of the team, Flint agreed. The tradition then started that in the last couple of minutes of practice, the rest of the team would put away the Quaffle and Snitch, and then enter a competition to see who could hit Harry the most amount of times before time ran out, whether from spells from the Keeper and Chasers on the ground, and sometimes in the air, or by the Beaters and Bludgers. Miles Bletchley, the Keeper, kept score and Harry's record of how long he was able to avoid getting hit by something. His average was four minutes and twenty-three seconds with the record being six minutes and two seconds. Considering that Harry was on a school broom and had to avoid up to ten things at once, that was really good. Harry promised himself that he would get a better broom over the summer holidays as he wasn't allowed back home until then.

Richard of course, didn't have to even wait for the Christmas Holidays to get a broom. About mid-October, a familiar snowy owl flew into the Great Hall during breakfast carrying a long, thin, broom-shaped package. Everyone's eyes followed Hedwig as she carried the package all the way towards the Gryffindor Table and dropped it in front of Richard and Ron. The package bounced off the table and forced Richard's breakfast to the ground. Scowling, Richard opened package to reveal a Nimbus 2000 broomstick. Nearly all of the Hall examined the fine broom. Even Harry had trouble tearing his eyes from its shiny mahogany body to eat his breakfast.

A tired Hedwig tried to gain her owner's attention but was waved away. Richard stood up and held the broom like he was admiring it in the light, but Harry knew what he was really doing. He was showing it off to all who could see. Daphne, who was surprisingly eating breakfast with Harry and Tracey, scoffed and turned back to her breakfast, but she was one of the few. Once again, Hedwig tried to gain her owner's attention and recognition, this time by nibbling Richard's fingers.

"HEY!" he screamed. Every eye turned towards Richard this time. "Stupid, bloody bird! Get away from me! You're useless; nearly making me drop my new broom, spilling and trying to steal my breakfast every morning, biting me all the time. Get away!"

With that he swung at Hedwig with the Nimbus, hitting her hard. The owl tried to fly away from her angry owner but only managed to get hit more. Suddenly, the broom wacked her right wing, sending her to the ground. Everyone was stunned; owls were considered sacred animals in the wizarding world and the fact that someone would willingly try and harm one was outrageous. Not wasting a second, Harry quickly stood up and rushed over to Richard. Punching him hard on the nose and sending him to the ground, Harry turned and carefully picked up Hedwig. He then carried her to the Dungeons, not aware that Tracey and Daphne were following him.

Hedwig hooted feebly as Harry carried her, but he softly told her to be quiet. Upon reaching the Slytherin common room, Harry carefully put her on one of the couches and started tending to her injuries. Turning when he heard the door open, he saw Tracey and Daphne rush over to them.

"Is she going to be alright?" Tracey asked.

Harry nodded as Daphne muttered, "I'm going to kill Potter for this."

Harry ignored the two girls and completely focused on his brother's former owl, that is, if he had anything to say about it. Tracey sat in one of the nearby chairs and quietly watched while Daphne continued to rant about what she would do to Richard. Eventually, she calmed down and sat in another chair to wait. Harry thanked every deity, known and unknown, that he had studied owls in the Potter library and listened to Apollo explain a bit about medicine. Speaking of Apollo, he and his sister left Harry's dorm when they heard him entered and slithered over to see what was wrong. Artemis crawled up the side of the couch and when she saw Hedwig, immediately started giving Harry advice on how to heal her. Apollo meanwhile, curled up in Daphne's lap, which was the closest unoccupied place, and also hissed out advice.

The two girls were quite surprised when the two snakes appeared and became even more so when they started hissing widely, and Harry back at them. They glanced back and forth between the three hissing individuals, Daphne frozen because of Apollo, the entire time Harry was healing Hedwig. Finally, Harry sat down on the couch and pulled Hedwig into his lap. The snowy owl carefully flapped her wings and then hooted up thanks to Harry. Harry petted the owl and allowed her to nibble his fingers affectionately.

"She'll be alright." he said, turning towards the girls. "Her wing wasn't as bad as I thought but I'm going to have her take a break from using it for a while. At least until I'm sure that she can fly well again."

As if to prove his point, Hedwig started to flap her wings. She got only a few inches off of his lap before, with a sharp hoot, she fell back onto the couch. Harry picked her up and carefully placed her back in his lap, holding her so she couldn't fly again.

"You seem to know quite a bit about healing animals Harry." said Daphne.

"I've had a lot of help," he responded, petting the top of Artemis's head. "Artemis here knows a lot about other animals while Apollo there," pointing at Daphne's lap "knows all about medicine. By the way, I think he likes you."

Tracey and Harry laughed at Daphne's horrified expression while Apollo nodded his head vigorously. Tracey got up from her chair and joined Harry on the couch and started slowly petting Artemis. Daphne was still starring at Apollo like he would jump out at attack her.

"Don't worry," Harry said, standing up and moving towards the two, "he won't bite you."

_{Oh yes I will}_ came the joking response.

_{Quiet you, and be nice!}_ Harry hissed back.

Both girls jumped at Harry's use of Parseltongue. Harry lightly gripped Daphne's arm and brought it down to Apollo's scales. Daphne closed her eyes in fear when her hand touched Apollo. Harry helped her pet him for a couple of seconds before letting go. Daphne continued petting the snake and after a couple of seconds, opened her eyes again. Slowly, she relaxed a bit and even smiled when Apollo leaned into her hand.

"Where did you get them Harry?" asked Tracey as Artemis slid into a more comfortable position for Tracey to reach.

Harry then told them the story of how he met the snakes and how they shaped his life. They were surprised at some of the information about them, especially the fact that they had been here since the year began. Apollo interrupted a couple of times, earning scolding from Artemis, and Harry translated for the girls. After the girls left for class, Professor McGonagall inquired about Hedwig. She seemed surprised when he mentioned that he healed her himself but asked him to take her to Hagrid for a check-up. Richard tried to reclaim his owl but Harry, along with Tracey, Daphne, and a handful of others from different houses, put a stop to that. Hedwig liked Harry and became his personal owl and friend, along with Daphne Greengrass.

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><p><strong>Quick question. I'm now working on second year and I was wondering what you all thought about Ginny. Read, review, and all that junk. <strong>


	7. Halloween and Quidditch

**I'm going to keep this story where it is in the search for a little while longer. I'll let you all know when I move it to the Harry/Daphne page search so that it'll be easier to find.**

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><p><em><span>Halloween and Quidditch<span>_

_October 26, 1991 Potter Manor_

Rose sighed, she was bored. Now that Harry, Artemis, and Apollo had left, there was no one to play with. Her father tried to play with her now that Richard was gone, but he wasn't the type to play with his young daughter. So, James did other things, she didn't know what. Sometimes he went out for an hour or two, leaving Rose by herself. Remus sometimes played with her but many times he was tired from either work or the full moon. So, to pass the time, Rose read. She read books, magical and muggle, maps, her brother's letters, basically anything she could get her hands on, even if it was above her skill level. Not for the first time, Rose wished that Harry had stayed, or at least left one snake behind, even if she couldn't understand them.

But right now, Rose was angry with her brother, he hadn't sent her a letter in almost two weeks! He had promised to send a letter every couple of days! His last letter was a little shorter than his usual and included how excited the Slytherin Quidditch Captain was for their first match and a quick hello from Harry's new friend Tracey. Harry had told her about how he had meet Tracey the first morning after being Sorted. Rose liked Tracey, she sounded fun, but she didn't like Tracey's friend Daphne. According to Harry's letters, she was cold, mean, and something about her just made Rose's blood boil. Maybe Harry had gotten tired of writing to his little sister all the time.

At the moment, Rose was looking out her bedroom window, leaning on her right arm. She was thinking on how to write to Harry. Richard hadn't sent anything to James for a while as well so she couldn't send Hedwig. Suddenly, a hint of white caught her eye. Turning, she saw that it was an owl headed her way. Once it got closer, Rose saw that it was Hedwig carrying a letter. Sitting up, Rose was confused when Hedwig flew through her open window. The owl landed on her bed and looked up at her. Rose just glared at the letter; she didn't want something from Richard. Then her eyes widened when she looked closer at her name on the letter; it was Harry's writing. Wondering why Harry was sending a letter with Hedwig, Rose tore off the parchment.

_Dear Rose, _

_Sorry for not sending you anything for a while, I'm sure you must be very angry with me. I wanted to wait to send this until I knew that Hedwig was better. Surprised little sister, Hedwig's mine now!_

Rose was shocked, how in the world did Harry manage to get Hedwig off of Richard?

_When Hedwig delivered Richard's new broomstick, he attacked her and injured her wing. Thanks to help from Artemis and Apollo, I managed to heal her, quiet well according to the groundskeeper and animal expert Hagrid. Unfortunately for Richard, he attacked Hedwig in the middle of the Great Hall and everyone saw. He lost fifty points and was given detention and I got Hedwig. _

Rose smiled and scratched behind Hedwig's head. The owl cooed and leaned into her hand; she always liked Rose.

_That's not the only surprising thing that has happened in the past couple of weeks. Out of nowhere, Daphne started being nice to me and now we're friends._

Rose nearly dropped the letter, that _girl_ was now friends with her brother?

_I know you're a little surprised by it, but she's really all right once you get to know her. She's become my partner in Potions and she's almost as good as me! She's still cold and doesn't talk very much sometimes, but she's still a good friend. The weirdest thing however is that Apollo simply loves her; he curls up in her lap whenever he can. _

Rose allowed herself a small smirk at the thought of snobbish Daphne Greengrass being the pillow to an immature Apollo.

_Quidditch season is coming up and our first match is next week against Gryffindor. I hope you can come and watch, and then you can meet Tracey and Daphne in person. Tracey says she already can't wait to meet you. I'll send you another letter in a couple of days. Have fun!_

_Love, Harry_

Rose put down the letter and sat on her bed next to Hedwig. Still petting the owl, Rose thought about how she would persuade her father to take her to the match. Maybe if she asked her father if she could 'see her brother play', that might work. She really wanted to meet Tracey too; Daphne, not so much. Even if she was now Harry's friend, that didn't mean she had to like her.

Halloween breakfast was amazing for Harry. The smell of pumpkins filled the Great Hall and was included as a part of many of the breakfast recipes including pumpkin bread, toast, juice, cereal, and pancakes, of which Harry was eating at the moment. He had never heard of pumpkin pancakes, much less tried them, but ignored Daphne's advice and piled a small stack onto his plate and actually enjoyed them. Daphne, who hated pumpkin pancakes, wrinkled her nose in disgust and turned back to her own chocolate-chip pancakes. Both had arrived to breakfast early and were currently waiting for Tracey to join them. Just as Harry was finishing, Tracey finally showed up and sat across from the two with an excited expression on her face.

"You'll never guess what I just heard Richard and Ron Weasley talking about."

"What?" asked Daphne, completely uninterested.

"You have to guess."

"You just said that we'd never be able to, so tell us." Daphne was starting to sound annoyed. Harry turned back to Tracey and motioned to her to continue. Pouting as being unable to get her friends to play her game, she waiting a few more seconds before answering.

"Apparently those two ran into a large three-headed dog somewhere around the school. They were talking about how it was standing on a trapdoor and what could possibly be hidden underneath. Do you think that dog could be in the forbidden corridor that Professor Dumbledore warned us to stay away from?"

Wide-eyed, Daphne asked, "Who in their right mind would look at the dog's feet when it has three large heads?"

Harry scoffed. "Richard and Ron have half a brain combined and even together they wouldn't have looked down for a second. Someone else, someone with good observation skills, would have had to have been with them."

Daphne snorted with laughter. The three spent the rest of breakfast talking about the three-headed dog and whatever it was guarding. The girls kept giving off wild speculations and laughing about it. Harry meanwhile, was curious. While Tracey and Daphne were in class, Harry went to the creature section of the library to research three-headed dogs. The library's vast collection worked against him this time. There were almost a hundred books about magical creatures but only one held the information Harry was looking for.

Cerberuses, as they were called, were used as guard dogs for centuries. Very rare to get a hold of and breed, and extremely dangerous, they were most famous in Greece where some of their most famous wizards used them to protect their treasures. The most surprising thing about them however, was that they are just for show. The Cerberus relied on its fearsome appearance to dissuade thieves and only attacked those that tried to get past them. The fact that only one wizard ever survived an attack by a Cerberus worked in their favor. The note said that he only survived after the dog finally succumbed to the sleeping potion it was slipped.

Harry continued to study Cerberuses until History class. Once there, he cramped his right hand in trying to keep up with Professor Binns's voice. He glared at Daphne after class as she waved it away and told him to stop being a baby; it was for her he wrote out the detailed notes she wanted. Both she and Tracey were unable to stay awake for longer than a minute in that class. Daphne was especially vulnerable; the longest amount of time Harry recorded before he heard snores was twenty-two seconds. When classes were finished for the day, the trio went to the Great Hall for the Halloween Feast. Since Tracey became his friend, Harry had slowly been allowed food from the rest of the table and the blockade stopped when Daphne joined. Harry was just starting to enjoy himself when Professor Quirrell burst through the Hall doors.

"T-troll, in the dungeons!" Quirrell's face pale and he lack the stutter that Harry was used to. He ran up to Professor Dumbledore's chair and said before he fainted, "Thought you ought to know."

The Hall was in pandemonium; everyone, from first to seventh year, was screaming and trying to force their way towards the doors. It took a couple of seconds and a few cracks from Dumbledore's wand. The students stopped and stared at their headmaster for help.

"Prefects, please lead your houses back to your dormitories, teachers, follow me to the dungeons."

The calmness in which Dumbledore spoke hide the fact that he too was scared, scared for his students. Even the best of wizards sometimes had trouble in dealing with trolls. Their anger, stupidity, and unpredictability made them real threats. In their panic, the students might hurt themselves or others, so he spoke like he had everything under control. He also spoke in a way that made sure his orders would be followed, it wouldn't do to have one of his students go and try and face the troll themselves, especially Richard Potter.

Harry felt like Daphne was going to tear off his left arm. As Gemma Farley led them through the corridors of Hogwarts, Daphne hung on his arm with a terrified look on her face. Harry didn't blame her, he had done reading on trolls and he didn't want to run into one anywhere, anytime. Tracey followed just behind them and kept looked over her shoulder even though they were in the middle of the group. There was a bang when Farley opened a door in front of them and Daphne screamed. Harry was in pain, his arm had nearly been ripped off and his ear was ringing. Daphne's scream caused a few others to scream and Farley had to restore order.

After everyone had calmed down again, and Daphne's face was bright red from embarrassment, Harry realized where they were. With the troll in the dungeons, the Prefects obviously couldn't lead them back to their common room so they had instead taken them to the library. Most of the other students claimed the many tables and became to talk among themselves about the troll while a few others grabbed some books and starting reading. With all of his homework caught up and bored with nothing to do, Harry went in search of a book to read, leaving Tracey and Daphne behind. Going deeper into the library than he usually did, Harry searched for something he hadn't read yet.

He finally found something new in a small section of the library. A maroon colored book labeled _All About Alchemy_. Only hearing a little about alchemy, Harry decided to take a look. The book captivated him from the start; a science of combining potion-making and powerful transformation magics, alchemy was an almost forgotten branch of magic. Two of the most powerful alchemists remaining were the headmaster Dumbledore himself and his partner and teacher Nicholas Flamel. Flamel was long regarded to be the best alchemists ever, having created the Philosopher's Stone, a powerful magical object that satisfied two of the three main goals of alchemy; the transmutation of common metals into gold and the creation of a remedy that prolonged life. He had read half way through the book when Tracey found him.

"Come on Harry, everyone's heading back to the dorm. They found the troll and the Feast will be finished there. What are you reading?"

Harry showed her the book before sadly putting it back on the shelf, he would come back after Potions tomorrow to finish reading it, and he would bring his notebooks. Daphne was waiting for them at the entrance to the library and Harry noticed that her face was still a little pale. The three friends then joined the rest of their house in walking back to the dungeons. Once there, they each grabbed a plate of food and went into Harry's dorm, a first for the girls. It was quieter than the common room and no one would bother them there except Apollo. Tracey, hyped up on sugar, also used this opportunity to continually scare Daphne, after which she would roll on the floor laughing while Daphne grabbed the bedposts in fright. Harry also found this funny, but the hilarity vanished after the sixth time and in the end, Daphne's shrieks were starting to get pretty loud. Both Harry and Daphne made an agreement that night, no more sugar for Tracey, ever!

The next morning Harry woke up shivering. After a quick hot shower, Harry started a small fire in the fireplace in his dorm. Happy for this perk, he then laid out a thick blanket in front of it for Apollo and Artemis to warm up on. When he left his dorm, he was met with another perk of his own dorm, the common room was freezing. On the way up to breakfast, Harry looked out a window and saw frost covering the ground. Daphne was already in the Great Hall, drinking a large cup of hot chocolate and wearing a think green jumper. She gave a grunt good morning and Harry guessed she was still upset about last night.

Daphne was in a foul mood the rest of the day, only it turned from Tracey to Harry later in the morning. During Potions, Harry refused to change the temperature of the flame under the cauldron they were working with, a change in flame could affect the whole potion. So instead, she joined Tracey, whose own cauldron was a lot warmer in the freezing dungeons. Harry smirked at the girls when Professor Snape marked their potion down because of the change in color while Harry's was marked perfect. Daphne was one of the first out of class when the bell rang for lunch and accidently left her stuff behind, Tracey quickly following her. While he too wanted to leave the dungeons, Harry knew that Daphne would freak when she found out that she had left her bag behind. So, he stayed a couple more minutes to collect her things and was rewarded by seeing Snape, who hadn't seen Harry, check his right leg. It was bloody and covered in bandages that needed to be changed. Grunting, Snape recovered his leg and limped out of the classroom.

Harry had just finished climbing the steps out of the dungeons when he was nearly run over by Daphne. When she saw her bag in Harry's hands, Daphne grabbed it, hugged Harry tightly, and ran off. Harry meanwhile, was frozen from the hug Daphne had given him. The only ones that had ever hugged him that he remembered were his mother and Rose; Daphne, or anyone else for that matter, hugging was completely new. He could fell the areas on his sides where Daphne touched him as well as his face burning. The feeling felt strange, he both wanted and didn't want it to happen again. All throughout lunch, Harry couldn't look at Daphne without feeling strange and being red in the face, but by dinner, the feeling had passed. The next day, it was back.

"Come on Harry, you have to eat if you want to keep your strength up to beat your brother today. Eggs, toast?"

This time, instead of setting next to him like usual, Daphne was seated across from him, pushing a plate towards him. He refused to look up. On Harry's right was Tracey, looking up every couple of seconds from her own eggs. Harry meanwhile, didn't feel like he could eat a single thing, he was too nervous. Looking across the Hall, he could see his brother was the same, just pushing around his eggs with his fork while Ron and Hermione, who somehow had become his friend offered him more food. After eating half her plate, Tracey sighed and turned towards Harry.

"Harry, just eat something! You're too skinny and the wind will blow you off your broom. And don't forget, Richard has the new Nimbus; you're using a school broom, so you need every advantage you can get, including breakfast. Now eat something before I stuff it down your throat!"

Tracey finished by pointing her fork in his face. Shocked, Harry stared at the point in front of him before turning to Daphne for help. She just shrugged and said, "She'll do it too."

Suddenly, Harry was scared, very scared. Warily, Harry kept one eye on Tracey as he started to eat some eggs. It was only after he had swallowed his fifth mouth full that Tracey's glare turned back to her own food. Harry was glad she did, he didn't think he could eat much more. He then caught Flint's eye and he made a motion with his hand. In order to keep Harry a secret for as long as possible, the Quidditch Team would leave early and then Harry would leave five minutes later. The Gryffindors left not long after the Slytherins and with a goblet of juice to down his eggs, Harry also left with a soft good-luck from Tracey and Daphne.

When he walked into the locker room, most of the Team was already changed into their emerald robes while Flint watched them, leaning against the wall. With his nerves already high, Harry couldn't help but notice that the others were bigger than him in both size and muscle for the first time. When the last person was changed, everyone grabbed their broom and followed Flint to the doors that led to the pitch, Harry in the back. As they waited, Harry cursed Tracey for her threats as he felt like he was going to be sick. Then a crack of light appeared and the doors opened.

Marcus Flint took off first, followed by the other Chasers. The Beaters then took to the sky and with a final nod towards Harry, the Keeper Bletchley flew out into the stadium. Taking a final gulp of air, Harry mounted his broom and followed his six teammates into the bright light, the cheers of the crowd making some of his nervousness go away. As they flew out, the commentator Lee Jordan, the Weasley twins' best friend, announced their position and last name.

"And Seeker,…Potter?"

As the Slytherins cheered louder, the Gryffindors stopped booing and the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws whispered to each other in confusion. Harry joined his teammates in flying a lap around the stadium. When they passed the Slytherin section, Harry could see Tracey and Daphne cheering in the front row. Rose was waving a black flag with Potter in purple from where she was seated next to their father in the Gryffindor section. He had to admire her cleverness, no one would know exactly who she was cheering for. The team finished their lap and converged over the middle of the field, across from the Gryffindors. A quick scan of faces showed that six out of seven where surprised to see him their while the seventh showed complete anger, the same look his father had on.

The referee Madam Hooch tossed the Quaffle into the air and Gryffindor gained immediate possession. Harry took to the higher air to get out of the way and to keep an eye on things. He frowned as he questioned how Gryffindor could've lost the past couple of years from the way they played. The Chasers worked together better than any group he had seen; the Beaters seemed to read each other's minds, but as they were twins, that seemed highly possible. Gryffindor's Keeper was highly confidante in himself and almost never missed. Everyone knew exactly what they were supposed to do and did it, except Richard. He followed Harry around on his own broom, glaring at him and ignoring the game entirely.

Harry quickly realized that Slytherin had a problem, the Chasers would bring the score up high and with Richard watching him, Harry couldn't get the Snitch in time to allow Slytherin to win. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see one of the twins hit a Bludger his way. Waiting until the last second, he rolled on his broom and the Bludger roared over him and towards Richard. The Bludger distracted Richard long enough for Harry to see the Snitch and race after it. He heard Richard behind him, quickly catching up, and then came a crash and a loud groan. Looking back, Harry saw that Flint had blocked Richard, delaying him. Harry looked forward again just in time to see another Bludger headed his way, curtsy of the second Weasley twin.

Harry dived and the Bludger grazed the top of his hair. It also cost him sight of the Snitch, but Richard didn't know that. As soon as he righted himself, Harry tore off again, this time headed straight for Angelina Johnson, who had the Quaffle. She screamed and dropped the Quaffle which was quickly taken up by Pucey. Harry continued on, weaving a bit so as to make the chase look convincing, all the while looking around for the Snitch. At last he stopped it, and ironies of ironies, it was in front of his father and Rose. Smirking, Harry allowed Richard to pull ahead, and quickly changed directions.

It was just like the race at the beginning of the year. Richard was traveling too fast and wasn't paying attention so it took him a while to realize that he wasn't chasing the Snitch at all. It also took him time to change directions as he didn't slow down at all. All of this, along with his head start, allowed Harry to grab the Snitch, right in front of his father. A great roar came up from the emerald supporters as Slytherin won one hundred and seventy to seventy. The other six Slytherins surrounded him and clapped, Flint even gave him a pat on the back.

After he had changed out of his Quidditch robes, Harry met Tracey and Daphne outside the locker rooms. He had just opened his mouth to talk to them when they heard a shout. The next thing Harry knew, he was on the ground as a red-haired missile tackled him to the ground with a bone-breaking hug.

"Rose…can't…breath."

Rose just giggled and tightened her hug so much, Harry thought she might break his ribs.

"So you're Rose, Harry's told us so much about you!"

Tracey was so excited to meet Harry's little sister and completely bombarded her with questions, ideas, and every other thing. Daphne had no interest in meeting Rose as she said 'all little sisters are annoying'. Harry had a feeling that she felt this way because of her own sister Astoria, who she never talked about. Rose didn't seem to mind however, in fact, she seemed to not want to meet Daphne as much as Daphne was to meet Rose.

After the girls left, Rose and Harry stayed to talk to one another. Letters were nice, but it was better to talk face-to-face. Rose enjoyed the game, but James didn't. He and Richard had tried to go to Dumbledore to try and remove Harry from the team but according to Dumbledore, there were no rules, regulations, or anything about Squibs on Quidditch teams, there wasn't even a law that prevented them from being on one. James was really unhappy and Harry knew that he wouldn't be welcome at home for a long time. He also told Rose about Tracey and Daphne, more importantly, how he felt about Daphne. Rose knew what the feelings meant and it just gave her one more reason to hate Daphne Greengrass.


	8. Christmas and Magic

**O.K., I've been doing a lot of thinking over the past couple of weeks and as a resutl, I have a couple of new story ideas that are just too good to pass up. As such, I've started writing them and will post some of them within the next week. This is also to get them out of my head so that I can focus on the stories I wrote first. They will be slow updates as I have about four in progress and with the little amount of time I have, I won't get much done. All of my stories, except for this one, will be updated once I have completed a chapter. This story has its tenth chapter finished and once it's posted this story will be updated like the others. Thankfully, that is still another four weeks away so I may yet write another full chapter before then. Read and review.**

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><p><em>Christmas and Magic<em>

The surprise that Slytherin had a Squib on their Quidditch Team was the talk of Hogwarts for weeks. The Gryffindors particularly enjoyed this as they teased the Slytherins mercilessly about how they were so bad, they needed to scrap the bottom of the barrel to get any players at all. The Slytherins of course, just responded that the Squib beat out his younger, magical brother in Quidditch. It also helped that the younger brother was also the Boy-Who-Lived. That shut the Gryffindors up faster than Snape assigning a detention. Harry was the hero of the Slytherin common room for weeks. Not only had they embarrassed Gryffindor heavily, but had also beaten the Boy-Who-Lived in Quidditch. Considering his father was the Great James Potter, Elite Chaser for Gryffindor, the victory could only have been sweeter if they had won the Cup in that match as well.

The excitement continued for longer than necessary. By the time the high was setting down, it was December and the holidays were only weeks away. Nearly everyone couldn't wait for the holidays; Harry was one of the ones who could. Both Tracey and Daphne were going back home to spend the holidays with their families. Harry, unwelcome at home until summer, possibly longer, had to stay at Hogwarts. Both girls felt a little sorry for him, but their excitement was just too much. They were the only ones however. Even after his glorious win for their Quidditch Team, most of the Slytherins still didn't like Harry, though only a few were outright hostile towards him. Thank-fully, no one except some Gryffindors tried to curse him anymore.

After the final Potions class of the year, the three Slytherin friends ran up the stairs in time to Snape end a fight between Malfoy, Ron, and Richard. He took off ten points despite the fact that Hagrid was trying to tell him that the two Gryffindors were provoked. Laughing at the boy's faces, Harry and his friends left the Entrance Hall, though not before he heard his brother mention a name he was looking for, Nicholas Flamel. Harry was confused as to why Richard was looking for the man. After Halloween, Harry had been returning to the library to read the Alchemy book and take notes, the librarian Madam Pince had refused to allow him to check it out. So, on top of his regular magical and non-magical studies, Harry spent as much time as possible reading the book. Because of this, he had taken a large interest in Alchemy.

Harry followed his brother to the library where the Gryffindors looked everywhere they could for Flamel. Harry smirked to himself as they weren't even close to finding him. Curious as to why they were looking for him, Harry opened the book of Alchemy to the chapter about Flamel; as he was the most celebrated Alchemist of all time, he got his very own chapter. There wasn't really much of note except his long life thanks to the Philosopher's Stone he created more than six hundred years ago, along with his partnership with Albus Dumbledore. That attracted Harry's attention.

Dumbledore had warned them at the beginning of the year to stay away from a forbidden corridor that was guarded by the best-of-the-best guard dog. Richard was talking about the dog guarding something that was either valuable or dangerous. The Philosopher's Stone fit the category and it had a connection to Professor Dumbledore. Could Dumbledore really have hidden his old partner Flamel's Philosopher's Stone inside of Hogwarts? If he did, why? Why hide the most one of the most powerful magical objects in the world inside of a school, it didn't make sense. Then Harry realized that was the point, no one would look for it here and Dumbledore could easily keep his eye on it.

When the Hogwarts Express left with those going home over break, Harry felt alone again, just like in the beginning of the year. Tracey had given him a hug good-bye, no weird feeling this time but still a shock, while Daphne had just given a small smile. He then returned to his empty common room, he was the only one from Slytherin staying over break. He spent his time exploring the castle freely, finding a couple of new secret passages in the process. He also spent time in the library, reading the first year books for Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. He had thought about asking Tracey and Daphne for their notes in those classes, but decided it would look weird for him to have them.

Christmas morning, Harry awoke to four presents at the foot of his bed; actually five, but it was addressed to Artemis and Apollo. It was from Rose and she had gotten them a thick wool blanket that they immediately curled up on when Harry laid it out for them. Wool seemed to be the theme for Rose as she had gotten Harry a green scarf made from wool. Both girls had sent Harry candy, Sugar Quills from Tracey and Every Flavor Beans from Daphne, along with joke cards with each. Tracey told him that she was going to have a lot of sugar during the holidays since he and Daphne stole hers. Daphne just said that it was revenge for the Express. Harry didn't know what she meant until he took a bite and got dirty socks. Surprisingly, Remus had also sent him something, a book called _A Detailed History of Magical Europe_.

The rest of the day was actually pretty good. Christmas Dinner was marvelous and Harry could have as much as he wanted whenever he wanted. There was also some quality entertainment as well. A couple of Hufflepuffs were friendly enough to allow Harry to join them in some partying and he even got a few wizard crackers. A witch Harry's age named Susan pulled one with him and got a bright red top hat that matched her hair. Everyone then laughed as Professor Dumbledore swapped a rear admirals hat with Snape for his baby's bonnet. There was even a surprise when the giant man Hagrid kissed Professor McGonagall on the cheek and she actually blushed and giggled like a school girl.

Harry went to bed that night quite happy though the next morning the feeling had passed. Christmas had been nice and Harry had actually felt like a normal student at Hogwarts but now, this morning, Harry returned to reality. While everyone else was either content to sleep in or go around talking to and thanking their friends, Harry sadly walked around the halls of Hogwarts. He remembered spending Christmas at Potter Manor in the past, with his mother and Rose in the beginning and then just with Rose. Harry felt a tear fall down his face as he wondered what his life would be like if his mother hadn't died from her mysterious illness. Would she have allowed him to go to Hogwarts, would she have accepted his being a Slytherin, would she have come to watch his first match, would he have been able to spend Christmas with her and Rose this year?

Harry was so involved in his thoughts that when he came to, he realized that he was lost. None of the walls looked familiar and there were no windows or stairs to identify where he was or what floor. Scared, Harry began to quickly move around, trying to find out where he was. His search led him to an old room that looked like it hadn't been used in years. The desks and chairs were covered in dust and piled along the walls. The only thing that looked remotely new was a large mirror that was almost as tall as the ceiling. Curious, Harry moved towards the mirror to examine it. At the top was carved _Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi_.

Harry then looked in the mirror and gasped, what he saw could not be possible. Standing behind him was his mother with her hand on his shoulder. Next to her was Rose. Both red heads were smiling and clapping and it took Harry a few seconds to figure out why. His mirror self was a little older than he was now and waving the wand he got from Ollivanders. The wand was giving out sparks and performing feats of magic to the entertainment of his mother and sister. Tears came to Harry's eyes as he gazed at the scene before him. Was this even possible, could he one day be able to do magic and bring back his mother? Harry was removed from his thoughts by a voice behind him.

"Good afternoon Harry."

Turning around, Harry saw a smiling Professor Dumbledore standing behind him. The old man walked forward and stood just behind Harry so that his reflection didn't show in the mirror.

"I see that, like many before you, you have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised."

"I didn't know it was called that Professor."

"Understandable, very few know of its existence and even fewer care to know the name. I do not wish to cause you distress, but know that whatever you see in the mirror is just what you want the most deep down within your heart, it may not even be possible."

Harry's heart fell. "I see my mother and sister standing around me. I can do magic."

Dumbledore's face softened. "I see, I too suffer from the loss of a family member and I too miss her greatly. However, no matter how much we wish it; there is no branch of magic that can bring back the dead. As for magic, it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Though, I do believe that one part of your vision is true. Your sister loves you very much Harry, never forget that. As I have said for years, love is the most powerful piece of magic there is. I came to move this mirror to its new home, though if you ever find it again, I wish you to be prepared of what you may see next time. Come, let's get you back to your dorm, it is almost curfew."

Later, Harry sat on his bed deep in thought; Dumbledore's words weighed heavily on him. Today was the first time he saw his mother since her death; James kept very few pictures of her around as it was too painful to be reminded of her. Even now Harry wished he had some photo or picture of her so that he wouldn't forget her. Tears started to fall down Harry's cheeks now, him missed his mother greatly. Harry knew Dumbledore's words were true, there was no magic to bring back the dead and that Rose loved him greatly, even more than their father and brother. No matter what, he wouldn't give up that for the world.

Yet the third part of his little talk affected Harry the most. Jumping off his bed, Harry went over to his trunk and opened it. After digging through it for a minute, he found what he was looking for. There it was, exactly where he had left it, in the box it came in, his wand from Ollivander. Harry had kept it in his trunk since that trip to Diagon Alley, never taking the wand out of it. Now, for the first time in months, the wand left the box and was in Harry's hand. As he touched it, Harry again felt the warmth pass from the wand into his hand.

Ollivander said that the wand had chosen him even though he was a Squib. Harry knew that he was a Squib only because his magic was now running through Richard. The only reason he was allowed to go to Hogwarts was because he was born a wizard. Was that why the wand chose him, because it recognized him as a natural-born wizard. If he had magic, would this have been his wand? Yes, Harry thought. He remembered that Richard had tried this wand and though it worked for him, it rejected him. Harry was the wand's rightful owner and master; it had worked for him in the shop. Then, another thought struck Harry.

Carefully, Harry carried the wand over to his desk and placed it there. Then, with Artemis and Apollo watching, he went over to his pillow. Tracey said that one of the first spells that they had learned was the Levitation Spell. They had practiced on feathers so Harry tore open his pillow and took a feather from it back to the desk. Ollivander had said that Harry's wand's true power was being held back, was that because he was a Squib and couldn't focus his magic on it. And then the wand had actually worked, so maybe he could do something. Harry went back to his trunk and dug around for his notes on magical theory and charms. For an hour Harry read until he felt like he got it.

Gripping the holly wand lightly, Harry pointed and said "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The feather did nothing. Twelve times Harry said the words to make the feather levitate and nothing happened. With each try, Harry's frustration grew until he dropped the wand on his desk thinking it was hopeless. He sat there for a couple of seconds, ready to give up, but then what he saw in the Mirror came back to him. While one part may be out of his reach, Harry was determined to make two parts true, no matter what. He was a natural-born wizard, he must have some magic in him somewhere, he _must_!

Late into the night and early morning, Harry continued to practice, vowing to never give up. When he felt frustration take hold, he reread his notes to calm down and when he finished, he tried again. He ignored Artemis's complaints that he needed to rest soon and skipped breakfast and lunch. Finally, near exhaustion, she persuaded Harry in going to dinner to eat something. While eating, Harry got an idea and asked Professor Flitwick how a wizard used a wand, out of curiosity of course. He didn't want anyone to find out about his experiments.

Professor Flitwick went into a ten minutes explanation on focus and intent in casting. They were also joined by Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore who were happy to provide some information that Harry was missing as a result of fate. As he went back to his common room, Harry's head was spinning from all the information given as well as some contradiction provided by his notes and the three professors. Harry also realized how tired he was and laid down to rest, only to sleep until the next morning. Harry was determined to get the Levitation Spell working and spent the next four days working on it, rarely leaving his dorm, even to greet Tracey when she came back.

"Some friend you are, not coming to greet me off the train." she teased the next morning. "I thought you were avoiding me because we left you here alone."

"Sorry, I was just busy."

"Doing what?"

"An…experiment. I needed to focus and I can't do that when you're around." The blond girl pouted, though Harry knew that she was just trying to make him feel bad. Looking up, Harry saw his second friend walk by. "Morning Daphne, how was your holidays?"

To Harry's surprise, the girl sent a glare at him, stuck up her nose, and walked away. It was much like how she acted towards him before they became friends. Tracey too was surprised by Daphne's cold response.

"She's been like that ever since I joined her on the Express yesterday. She was fine when we talked about our break and families, but when I mentioned you, she turned cold, didn't even want to talk about you. From what I understand, she even threw away your present, I mean, who does that to good chocolate?"

Harry was hurt; he had given both his friends and sister a pack of Chocolate Frogs. Rose had loved them and wrote that she had finally found Circe, a witch that she had been looking for for three years. Daphne's strange act continued, she would talk normally with Tracey but would avoid or glare at Harry, often leaving the room when he entered. She stopped being Harry's partner in Potions and instead went to join Tracey all the time. She no longer wanted his notes in History of Magic as well and when Tracey asked why she was acting this way, all she got was 'I don't want to talk about it'. Harry finally got fed up with it and asked her himself why she was ignoring him when they were friends.

"We are no longer friends Harry Potter."

That had been her response and shocked him to the core. He had thought that they were goods friends when she had left for Christmas Break but now…. When Harry told Tracey about it, she was just as surprised as Harry, but thought that it would pass soon, there would be no way she couldn't remember some of the good times they had. However, come the Quidditch match against Ravenclaw in February, Daphne still refused to be friends with Harry again. Afterwards, Tracey told him that she did cheer him on and clapped just as loud as Tracey when he caught the Snitch as she did during the Gryffindor game. Both first years were confused by their friend's strange behavior.

Without Daphne, Harry was once again reduced to only Tracey as a friend, though she was starting to spend more time with Daphne. Harry didn't mind, it gave him more time to focus on trying to make his wand work. After almost two months of work, his feather still refused to float even an inch off the desk. Harry was starting to feel that if he didn't get the spell to work by the end of his first year, he never would. He was spending every available amount of time practicing, sometimes skipping meals and sleep just to work longer. Finally, a couple days into March, something happened.

It was late at night and Harry had been working for hours, ignoring Artemis's complaints again. He felt that he was closer than ever to something, he just didn't know how to explain it. After what felt like the one thousandth time that night, Harry lowered his wand and took a deep, calming breath. He had been focusing on the spell with every strain of concentration available and was starting to get a headache. Just once more and then he would end it for tonight. Taking another breath, Harry closed his eyes and thought hard about what he wanted and the incantation. He cleared his mind as best he could and sent as much energy into his wand as he could and spoke the words.

As soon as they left his mouth, Harry's headache erupted, ending his concentration. He felt a sharp pain, like something was trying to cut his forehead into two. The pain became a burning sensation around the location of his scar and then Harry felt it. A strange amount of power filled him and he lost a great deal of his energy. When he opened his eyes, the feather that he had been working with was an inch off the desk. Surprised, Harry's concentration ended, as did the power and pain. The feather dropped and Harry felt more tired than ever, but also happy. At long last, he had finally done some magic! Knowing that he couldn't continue tonight, Harry went to bed, planning to retry in the morning.

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><p><strong>Also, this story is now located in the DaphneHarry search so you can find it there. Hopefully that means I'll also get some more readers as that seems to be quite the popular pairing.**


	9. The Truth and a Stone

**OK, some of the questions many of you have will be answered here, in this chapter. I don't know when I'll update again as the tenth chapter is halfway done but I haven't done anything to it for at least a month or two. I'll post it as soon as I'm done with it though, so hold on. Read and review.**

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><p><em>The Truth and a<em> Stone

As Harry slept, visions passed through his head. He watched them, as if they were happening to him. He was a young boy in an orphanage. His name was Tom Riddle. Tom was a wizard; Harry knew that, probably a muggle-born whose parents abandoned him. He could do strange things; his control over accidental magic was extraordinary, even at a young age. Though, Tom was cruel; he never showed any remorse for his actions and used his magic to hurt others. Then one day, Dumbledore appeared and gave him his Hogwarts acceptance letter. Tom was excited to be able to learn about magic, though he was also greedy.

The visions skipped to Tom's years at Hogwarts. Harry watched as Tom was sorted into Slytherin. The other Slytherins teased and bullied Tom because of his muggle upbringing. Tom in turn bullied others, but never in the view of the teachers. He was very skilled in magic, always being at the top of his class. But Tom wanted to learn more. He studied and studied at the library, hungry for more knowledge and power. He got it in the form of Parseltongue, he could speak it too. Tom also found the Heir's Dorms and claimed them as his own like Harry did.

Harry learned that Tom's mother had died giving birth to him; both boys had lost their mothers at a young age. Tom wanted to find his father, the man he was named after. No record of another Tom Riddle, or even another Riddle, existed at Hogwarts; nobody on his father's side went to Hogwarts. He then hunted his mother's side of the family, finding his grandfather with his middle name, Marvolo. During the summer before his sixth year, Tom traced his mother's family to a small village. There, he discovered his uncle and dead grandfather. He learned the truth about his parents and went to his father's house. There, Tom Riddle performed his first real murders.

After framing his uncle for the deaths of his father and grandparents, Tom went back to Hogwarts. He discovered a dark branch of magic called Horcruxes. Wanting to live forever, Tom made his first with the death of a muggle-born girl he had killed last year when he opened the Chamber of Secrets. Wanting to know more, Tom sought answers from the only one he could, Professor Slughorn. From him Tom learned that it was theoretically possible to make more than one Horcrux, so he did.

The visions began to jump around, going from the creation of one Horcrux to another, ending with number five. Tom, now calling himself Lord Voldemort, wanted six to create a seven part soul. Harry then watched Lord Voldemort's memories, as he now knew what they were, as he waged war against Magical Britain, killing dozens. He watched Voldemort's Death Eaters in action, some of their 'fun' making Harry sick. Then, another Death Eater, Harry couldn't see who, informed Voldemort of a prophecy that predicted his downfall. A second unknown Death Eater provided Voldemort of the location of the Potters and two of the babies that might defeat him.

There was one last memory. Harry watched as Voldemort walked through the little village of Godric's Hallow. He watched as he found the house where he, his brother and parents were hiding. He watched as his father dueled Voldemort but was cast aside. He watched as Voldemort went up to the nursery where his mother was protecting him and his brother. Voldemort cast her aside as well and then considered which baby to kill. Finally he chose Richard and cast the Killing Curse. There was a lot of green light and the memory ended.

But that was not the end. Harry watched from his own point of view as Voldemort met his end through his rebounded curse. The body vanished and all that was left was a clock, a wand, ash, and a piece of what Harry knew to be a soul fragment. He watched a shadowed man enter the room and take the wand, then as the soul fragment tried to enter Richard and failed. Then the fragment tried to enter Harry, right where his scar was, and succeeded.

Harry sat up in bed. Now a lot of things made sense; his Parseltongue abilities, those strange visions, it was a part of Tom Riddle's/Voldemort's memories. Harry touched his scar; he had part of the most dangerous dark wizards' soul there. He knew where his ability to use magic came from. Because the soul fragment was a part of him now, its powers were now his; Parseltongue, magic, memories. However, as a soul fragment, its powers were limited. He was only able to do _some_ magic, and only with great struggle. The memories he also viewed were incomplete because of the fragment as well.

Harry knew that Voldemort had knowledge of powerful and ancient magics, if he was able to get ahold of all five of Voldemort's Horcruxes; he may be able to use his knowledge and maybe even magic. If Harry couldn't access Voldemort's magic, then his knowledge could point Harry in the direction of somehow getting his own magic back from Richard. It was worth a try but Harry only had limited knowledge of Voldemort's memories. The only Horcrux that he knew the location of was the Diadem here at Hogwarts. Although he knew how to get it, he didn't know how to use its powers for himself. He would have to figure that out first before he took the Horcrux from its resting place.

Harry's discovery was a major one. Although Voldemort's memories were incomplete, half of them were about his time at Hogwarts. The information granted Harry was very helpful in his class work. The memories also helped Harry practice his spell work, but that was something else entirely. He estimated that he had gotten lest than 1/32 of Voldemort's power. Despite how powerful Voldemort was, his power split into thirty-two wasn't much. So, Harry was forced to practice simple spells but even they required a tremendous amount of energy on his part. Even getting his wand to light for a couple of seconds left him extremely tired. He didn't want to know what would happen if he tried something beyond his ability.

However, Harry wasn't allowed much time or energy to test his limits. When the Easter Holidays came around, the teacher assigned them mountains of homework. Even Harry, who was taking less than the rest of his year, was overloaded.

"At least you have it easy," Tracey told him one day in the library. "Without Defense, Charms, and Transfiguration you only really have to worry about Astronomy and your Muggle Studies class. History and Potions, you could take those exams with your eyes closed, and Herbology, well, you may have to study for that. But for me, I've still got six chapters to read for Charms and I'll never get these Transfiguration spells memorized."

She was pulling her hair out so much that she looked wild. Harry laughed softly. "At least you have it easier than Greengrass."

Tracey frowned at Harry and then turned towards her first friend. Harry had started calling her Greengrass a couple of weeks ago as she had started calling him Potter to show that their friendship was well and truly over. As such, Harry had refused to lend her his History notes and forbidden Tracey from doing the same. As such, the brunette witch was buried in books, falling asleep every couple of minutes as she tried to read. She currently was snoring on a particularly large book and had been doing so for ten minutes.

"Harry, can't you take pity on her?"

No" he answered bluntly.

Tracey frowned again and turned back to her Charms book. The rift between her two friends had grown larger than it had been before the start of Hogwarts. Daphne had even threatened to stop being her friend if she didn't stop hanging around, in her words, 'that useless Squib'. So far, it had been empty threats but she feared that one day, she may have to choose between the two.

Studying wasn't the only thing keeping Harry busy. During the Hufflepuff/Gryffindor game, Gryffindor had scored a healthy amount of points. Enough points that they had overtaken them by more than a hundred. In order for Slytherin to win the Quidditch Cup for the fourth year running, they had to beat Hufflepuff by two hundred and twenty points or Gryffindor had to lose by sixty to Ravenclaw. Neither option was very good but everyone did their best to make sure that Professor Snape kept the Cup in his office. So Flint started having the Quidditch Team working harder than ever.

Then one morning, everyone awoke to find Gryffindor a hundred and fifty points less. No one could figure it out until Draco Malfoy started bragging about it. Richard, along with his two friends, had been caught trying to smuggle a baby dragon through the halls. Everyone in Slytherin was celebrating, even though Malfoy had cost them about fifty points himself. Gryffindor was now in last place for both the House and Quidditch Cup and now Slytherin was in the lead for the Quidditch Cup while in second for the House. The rest of the school didn't share the Slytherin's enthusiasm. With Gryffindor out, support went to Ravenclaw, who lead the House Cup by forty points.

The weekend before finals started, Slytherin played Hufflepuff. While they knew that they couldn't win the match or the Cup, the Puffs still fought hard. The more points that they scored, the higher their House standing would be and the more points they prevented Slytherin from getting, the harder it would be for them to get either Cup. In the end however, Harry caught the Snitch, winning two hundred and sixty to one hundred and twenty. With this victory, they had all but claimed the Quidditch Cup, they only had to wait until the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw match to get it.

Two days later, final exams started. Tracey had gone so crazy with studying, Harry had to knock her out just to get her to rest for them. She glared at Harry when she woke up but he knew that she was grateful. Professor Quimble's Muggle Studies Exam was Harry's first. It involved telling and explaining some of the differences between the muggle and magical way of doing things. Over the next week, Harry had to take four more exams, all of which he knew he did better on than Muggle Studies. History of Magic was the last one for everyone and when they left the classroom, Tracey was singing. Harry didn't blame her, what he blamed were her parents for not teaching her how to sing.

As everyone was enjoying the warm weather that went along with the end of exams, Harry decided to go down to the dungeons. While he too wanted to enjoy the weather, he didn't think that students should be the only ones. Apollo and Artemis were overjoyed to finally be outside, something that they hadn't done since before Hogwarts. Apollo was even more overjoyed because Harry had never allowed them out of his dorm since Daphne had stopped being his friend and Apollo had lost his favorite pillow. The sun felt perfect for the two snakes and they happily shed their skin, growing a couple more inches in the process. He was carrying them back to his dorm; a girl had seen them and screamed, when he heard his brother and his friends.

"I'll bet anything that letter was sent by Snape. Now, with Dumbledore gone, he can go after that Stone. He has all the information he needs and nothing will stop him, nothing but us."

Hiding, Harry carefully listened to what the three were saying. It didn't take long to discover that they were talking about the Philosopher's Stone. For some reason they believed that Professor Snape had been plotting to steal the Stone. There were more protections guarding the Stone other than the three-headed dog, which was owned by Hagrid and called Fluffy. Snape had figured out how to finally get past the other protections and had removed Dumbledore, making his way clear. They were planning on going after Snape and the Stone themselves, hoping to save it and be looked at like heroes. Harry had heard enough, there was no way he was going to let them go after the Stone, he would try and stop them. He knew that none of the professors would believe him so he was on his own that night.

That night, while everyone was asleep or still celebrating the end of finals in their dorms, Harry snuck out. Keeping to the shadows, Harry did his best to avoid people. The only ones he saw were a couple of ghosts and Mr. Filch on the main floor. When he got to the third floor corridor, he heard music. He opened the door in time to see one of Richard's friends jump down through the open trapdoor. Fluffy was barking up a storm, trying to follow but its head was too big. Noticing a small harp on the floor, Harry ran to grab it. The dog heard his footsteps and turned his way, but before it could do anything, Harry was plucking the harp's strings. Although it wasn't much, the dog's eyes drooped enough that Harry was able to sneak over to the door and jump through.

The fall was long and Harry was beginning to wonder what would happened when he reached the bottom when he landed on a soft plant. Despite the landing, it took Harry a couple seconds to regain his breathing and stop his head from spinning. That was all the time the plant needed. In seconds, long creepers had wrapped themselves around Harry's legs and were making their way up his torso. He struggled to rip the plant off him but it only made the plant fight harder. Panic began to fill Harry. Moments began to pass through his mind; times spent with his mother (he was going to join her), fun times with Rose, Apollo, and Artemis (they would miss him, and he would never get to see his sister again), joking with Tracey, and even Daphne. Harry had lied to himself, claiming that he never missed her.

The truth was that Daphne being gone had left a large hole in him that no one, not even Rose, could fill. If his last thoughts were to be about anything, he wanted them to be about Daphne. He allowed every memory he had of her to fill him, reminding him of everything good and bad. From the moment he first met her on the Hogwarts Express to the last time he saw her in Herbology. It was the final and he had snuck a glance over at her. She was working on identifying the Devil's Snare plant. Then, everything hit Harry; this plant that was strangling him was Devil's Snare.

Figuring out how to beat it, Harry took a great gulp of air and held his breath, playing dead. The Devil's Snare stopped moving and waited. Harry knew that the plant thought him either dead or dying so it was waiting to make sure he was really dead. Finally, when Harry felt he could hold his breath no longer, the plant released him, dropping him beneath it. Standing, Harry took a handful of big breaths to get the air back in his lungs. He had to admit that Professor Sprout was smart it setting up Devil's Snare, it was a rare plant that few would recognize at first glance. If that and Fluffy were the first protections, Harry began to worry about Richard. Although he didn't like him, he had to stop him before he did something stupid.

The next chamber was simpler in design, but probably just as hard. Flying keys were up in the air but only one would open the locked door in front of him. The only way to open the door was catch the right key, out of hundreds, with an old broom. Harry knew that only a small handful of people could do this, it wasn't easy to catch an enchanted object that could fly. Lucky for Harry, he knew that he was one of those people. Of course it was easier said than done, most of the keys attacked him and finding the right one without knowing what it looked like was next to impossible. Finally, sporting many cuts, Harry managed to catch the right key after a couple minute chase; it was good but no match for the youngest Seeker in a century.

Harry was now worried about catching up with Richard. From what he had said, there were seven professors guarding the Stone. He had passed three traps but it had taken him time, who knew how far Richard had gotten in that time. That answer was in the next chamber. A giant chess set took up most of it while at the other end was a door that Richard and Hermione had just gone through. Looking around, Harry could see his other friend Ron out cold, fallen in battle. Harry considered him lucky; with a giant chess set, anyone who wanted the Stone would have to place themselves in danger to try and cross. He also believed that the two kings were charmed so that a player couldn't become them, forcing a player to take a different piece. Ron could have been killed during the game.

Pleased that he had almost caught up, Harry ran to the other door before the chess pieces reset themselves; Harry was an average player but he doubted that he would be good enough to beat this chess set. As it was magical, there most likely would be strategy implanted so as to make it harder for someone to attempt to cross. The next room's smell almost knocked Harry out. Inside was a twenty foot tall mountain troll that was, thankfully, knocked out. This had to be Quirrell's defense but it didn't make sense as Quirrell had been the one to find the troll on Halloween. Understanding filled Harry and he rushed towards the second door. Before he reached it, Hermione came out and ran back towards the Chess Room, not even noticing Harry.

Knowing that Hermione would take care of Ron, Harry continued on to get his brother. The sixth chamber was a riddle with poisons and fire. Harry was thankful that his mother had taught him some logic as he drank the potion that allowed him to go forward. On the other side of the black fire, Richard and Professor Quirrell were talking.

"Yes, Severus does seem the type doesn't he? I'm actually surprised that he was the only one to figure out that it was _I_ trying to steal the Stone. For too long I've hat to teach you brats about muggles, never getting much respect or payment for all my hard work. That's why I decided to take up the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, Dumbledore would never let me resign my post but he's always needing new Defense teachers, so much that it's the highest paying job after Headmaster at this school. I finally saw an end, I could get more money, respect, and I could finally leave as no one stayed past a year, the job's jinxed.

But imagine my surprise when I returned to find out that the Philosopher's Stone was going to be hidden at Hogwarts. All my dreams were about to come true, I could get as much money as I wanted as well as a longer life to enjoy everything, what more could anyone ask for? Why do you think I volunteered myself to help protect the Stone, it gave me the opportunity to see what else was guarding it. Don't stand in my way boy; you are no match for me."

"I beat You-Know-You and I can beat you!"

Quirrell laughed. "You can't even say his name. Voldemort." Richard flinched and Quirrell laughed again. "That's right, flinch, be scared boy. You are nothing more than a cowardly little child who thinks he can play with the big boys, play the hero."

Quirrell laughed harder and it rang throughout the chamber. Richard obviously couldn't take being called a coward and rushed Quirrell, who was caught off guard. Richard slammed into the older wizard and tried to fight with his fists. Quirrell defended himself the best he could while also backing away to try and use a spell. Harry chose this moment to come forward, if he could get the Stone while Quirrell was distracted, he could take it and run. He and Richard could force him to follow them to one of the teachers or maybe even Dumbledore if he arrived in time. Harry stopped in front of what he realized was the Mirror of Erised.

Once again, his mother and Rose were standing around him as he performed magic. This time, mirror-Harry started waving his wand and something blood red was conjured. Mirror-Harry caught the object, which was a large stone, and put it in his pocket at the same time something heavy fell in his own pocket. He had the Stone! Harry turned around to tell Richard to run and discovered to his horror that Quirrell had been pushed his way. Harry jumped and rolled while Quirrell was sent crashing into the mirror. Glass fell and Quirrell screamed in pain as it cut him. Taking his chance, Harry told Richard to run while also making his way to the door.

When he reached it, he looked back to see if Richard was following him. He wasn't. Instead, he just stood there as Quirrell struggled to stand only to fall and make his cuts and bleeding worse. The door behind Harry slammed open and Professor Dumbledore entered, ignoring Harry. Again Harry ran, this time not stopping until he was safely back in his dorm. When he did, he plopped on his bed and took out the Stone. It was beautiful and small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. The light reflected off of the red surface and he could almost see himself in it. The proper thing would be to return the Stone to Dumbledore, but something in Harry's mind told him not to, that the Stone was now his. He couldn't help it, Harry smirked.


	10. Summer

**OK, it's been more than a month since I last updated and I'm very sorry about that, but here is the next chapter. You can maybe expect another before the end of the month but with finals approaching, I don't know. Read and review!**

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><p><em><span>Summer<span>_

Albus Dumbledore sighed; things hadn't worked out like he planned. Then again, even the best laid plans can go array. He was sure many people would criticize him for hiding the fabled Philosopher's Stone at a school, but it was necessary. After more than ten years, he hadn't seen hide or hair of Voldemort, nothing to indicate that the Dark Lord had survived his encounter with Richard Potter all those years ago. The Stone was a trap, to see if Voldemort would try and get it. The only one to have fallen into his trap was Quirrell, whose jealousy and greed had been his downfall and led to his death. Now, Dumbledore had two choices to make regarding Voldemort; he was either dead at long last, or he smelt the trap he laid and hadn't come. Dumbledore hoped that it was the former, even if it was a trap, he was sure Voldemort would've come to try and regain some power. Now that the trap had been sprung, all that was left to do was destroy the Stone.

Or, at least that was the original plan. The truth was, his old friend Nicholas hadn't asked him to guard the Stone at all, he just wanted him to destroy it. Nicholas and his wife had gotten tired of living their long lives and decided to take the next great adventure. Before he had died just before the school year had started, Nicholas asked his most trusted friend to destroy the Stone to prevent it from falling into the hands of dark wizards. Dumbledore had agreed and planned to do so when another thought came to him. He could use the Stone to make sure that Voldemort was well and truly dead as well as test Richard. He had worries about Richard's magic, which was really Harry's because of the magical transfer ritual. Richard had done fine and both the Stone and Mirror of Erised had been destroyed, but not in the way Dumbledore wanted. Then again, he though as he popped a lemon drop in his mouth, the end result was the only thing that mattered, who cared how it all happened?

The rumors circling the school the next day had Harry's attention. The fact that Quirrell had tried to steal a magical artifact from within Hogwarts was a complete secret, so the whole school knew by lunch. Of course, no one knew the whole story; Harry didn't know how Richard found out about the Stone or how he and his friends got past all the traps, and Richard and Dumbledore never even knew that Harry was there. This suited Harry just fine as it meant that the Philosopher's Stone was now all his. He went back to the library to do some research on Alchemy and to maybe find out how the Stone worked.

There wasn't much, most of the information was kept secret by Flamel. There were a few notes about Alchemy's basic principle; in order to create something, another thing of equal value must be lost. Flamel never said what it was that he sacrificed to create the Stone, but Harry suspected that it was something great. Another note on the principle of Alchemy was a note Flamel made in his research notes. While experimenting with the Stone, Flamel accidently caused the Black Death in 1348. Horrified at the results, Flamel halted all research with the Stone. One final note Harry saw about Flamel's research was that because of the Stone, he and his wife Pernelle lost the ability to have children completely.

Two days later, Gryffindor played Ravenclaw in the final match of the Quidditch Cup. Harry and the rest of the Slytherins cheered the Claws on as they beat Gryffindor, but that quickly started to drop. The Gryffindor team was good, but this game, Ravenclaw was better. The Chasers were in perfect form, scoring goal after goal. The score quickly rose to the point where the Slytherins stopped cheering because if they kept up like this, Ravenclaw would win the Cup. In the end, Richard caught the Snitch, ending the pain, but Gryffindor still lost by over three hundred points. The students wearing blue cheered as a scowling Professor Snape handed over the Quidditch Cup to Professor Flitwick.

Harry knew exactly how Snape felt and hung his head. The day after rescuing the Stone, Professor Dumbledore awarded Gryffindor a hundred and fifty points for the protecting of the Stone. That, combined with the points scored in the game, gave Gryffindor the House Cup, leaving Slytherin behind in both Cups. Some Slytherins politely clapped for the Ravenclaws but none clapped for the Gryffindors at the End-of-the-Year Feast. There, three-fourths of the school was cheering for Slytherin's downfall. Harry could see his brother sending him a large smirk. He just sighed and quietly ate his meal alone, Tracey was with Daphne at the other end of the table.

The day before everyone went back home, final grades came out along with a notice to not practice magic during the break. Harry, as a so called Squib, didn't get one. Another thing Harry didn't get was a class ranking. As his schedule was unusual do to the fact that he didn't take some classes, it was difficult to compare his scores with the rest of his year. What he did get was the top scores in Potions and History of Magic. Pleased, Harry finished packing his trunk. The next day, Harry told Tracey to sit with Daphne and that he would write to her over the summer. With a half-minute pause to consider his offer, Tracey agreed and also promised to write. With a compartment by himself, Harry let Apollo and Artemis have free reign while he read his _Advanced Potion Making_ book.

Harry was thankful that no one bothered him the entire trip. Even Richard didn't come by to make fun of Harry or rub it in his face that Gryffindor won the House Cup. He had just finished pulling on his muggle clothes when the Hogwarts Express pulled into Kings Cross. Quickly tossing his robes into this trunk with Apollo and Artemis, Harry exited the train. He found Rose almost right away due to the fact that she was jumping up and down, trying to get his attention. Their father and Remus were standing behind her. Once he was clear of most of the crowd, Rose dashed over and hugged him tightly.

Having missed his sister greatly, Harry dropped his trunk and hugged her himself. Looking around at the other families, Harry could see Richard hugging his father while Ron was talking to his mother. On the far side of the platform, Harry could see Tracey talking very quickly with her parents, looking Harry's way a couple of times. Farther down was Daphne with her parents. He could see a little girl with brown hair holding on to the hand of a woman with blonde hair. The woman was smiling and listening to her daughter, nodding once or twice. Daphne's father, a tall man with dark brown hair, also stood nearby, listening to his daughter. He must have felt Harry's eyes on him because he turned towards Harry and his eyes narrowed. He turned back around, blocking Harry's view of Daphne and her family.

Rose saw where he was looking and frowned. She pulled Harry away, towards Remus so that they could go home, she wanted him to tell her all about Hogwarts and teach her how to ride a broom. It took a couple of minutes because the other Potters were talking with the Weasleys. The youngest, Ginny, gave Harry a small smile which he returned, a repeat of their exchange at the start of the year. With both of their brothers at Hogwarts and with no one to play with, both red headed girls spent some time at the Burrow, the Weasley's house. Although she didn't hate it, Rose didn't really like playing with the older girl. Finally, both families where on their way home.

It didn't take long for Rose to persuade Harry to teach her how to fly. As all they had was Richard's old broom, Harry first taught her the proper grip and riding techniques. Then he had her float up a couple inches off the ground. However, Rose was so excited that she accidently took off. She flew around for about ten seconds before she fell of the broom about four feet in the air. Although it wasn't a long fall or very hard, it left her a little dizzy and confused. To prevent it from happening again, Harry took her for a ride with him. Rose absolutely enjoyed the ride and begged Harry to go faster every couple of seconds. It was a little difficult for him to do so as there were two of them on the broom and Harry wasn't used to that. There was also the fact that it was Richard's old broom and it couldn't go very fast anyways.

It took a week, but soon Rose was flying by herself. Harry left her to her own devices as he kept to his room. Everyone thought that he was doing homework but in reality, he was experimenting with the Philosopher's Stone. Not knowing how it worked, Harry flipped through his pages of notes on Alchemy. After dozens of tries, Harry finally managed to make gold. It wasn't much, only worth a couple of galleons, but it was a start. Harry's plan was to use the Stone to make as much money as he wanted so that he could buy whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. He knew that he had a small fortune in Gringotts but he didn't know if James remembered. If he did, there was no doubt he would take it; if he didn't, Harry would move it to another vault in his name so he couldn't take it. That gold would remain there as Harry didn't think that James would allow him to use the main Potter vaults.

Harry also planned to use the Elixir of Life on him. He knew that relying heavily on the Elixir could create unneeded side-effects, but he planned on living for quite a while. There was also the theory that the Elixir could help restore his magic. Harry wanted to wait before trying it.

Apart from studying the Stone and teaching Rose broomstick riding, Harry also did his homework, completing it in a couple of weeks, unlike Richard who would wait until just a few days before school started again. He also got a couple letters from Tracey, asking him about his summer and begging him for his History notes again. She refrained from talking about Daphne, the only time she was mentioned was when Tracey told Harry that she was going to spend two weeks with her as a warning to not send any letters. Tracey had an understanding with her two friends; while with one, she wouldn't mention the other. Harry could tell that it was hurting his first friend the way they avoided each other but Harry wanted Daphne as his friend as well but it would never happen the way she was acting.

For some strange reason, Harry was the only one at Potter Manor receiving mail. Rose and Remus had no one to write to, James didn't send any letters, and Richard had no owl now. It was even stranger still when Ron Weasley came over and asked about Richard not responding to his letters. Both James and Richard were upset that someone would interfere with their mail and complained to anyone and everyone at the Ministry but no one had an answer. One finally came on Richard's and Harry's twelfth birthday when a scared little house-elf named Dobby told Richard that it was too dangerous to return to Hogwarts this year. The creature would give no other details except strongly implying that his masters, who were believed to be bad wizards, were planning terrible things that would happen at Hogwarts.

Harry watched the exchange from the doorway while James and Richard spoke with the elf. When it finally left, James sent a furious letter to both the Minister and Dumbledore about the elf. He was furious that an elf, of all creatures, had the nerve to tell _his_ son that he shouldn't go back to Hogwarts. Dumbledore agreed to watch for the threat but all the adults believed that something was weird about the house-elf.

A few days later, the Potters went to Diagon Alley to purchase their school supplies. They were to also meet the Weasleys there. When Harry emerged from the floo in the Leaky Cauldron, the red-haired family was already waiting for them. The twins and Ron were already talking with Richard while Mr. Weasley and his wife talked with James. From what he heard, they were to also meet the Grangers as well. The muggle family entered the pub with their daughter a few minutes later and everyone began shopping.

Harry and Rose followed the Grangers and Weasleys to Gringotts, he wanted to check his vault. While the Grangers were exchanging money, Harry went up to the nearest teller.

"Excuse me, but I would like to talk to someone about my vault."

The goblin looked down at him and sneered. "Name?"

"Harry Potter"

"Key?"

Harry handed over his vault key which he had stolen from his father. The goblin looked at the key and nodded before calling over another goblin. The two conversed in their language for a minute before the second told Harry to follow him. Harry and Rose did and were led through one of the many side doors into a long hallway with dozens of more doors. The goblin chose one set at random and they found themselves in a private room. The goblin took a seat behind the desk and pulled out a large ledger while Harry and Rose took seats in front of the desk.

"Let's see," the goblin said, looking through the book very slowly, "Potter, Potter, here we are. Both you and your siblings have a trust vault of 100,000 Galleons each, set up a few days after your births. These are the only vaults you may access at this time though you can access the main vault with permission from your parent. Right now, only your brother's vault has been accessed."

"Is my father able to access my vault?"

"Yes, he's able to add or subtract money as he sees fit but he is not allowed to close it unless you are disowned, as is pure-blood tradition."

"I would like to transfer all the money from my trust vault into a new vault that only I can access. I would also like to deposit some money into that vault."

The goblin nodded. "That can be done, for a fee. We do not just create new vaults on command, we expect to be paid for our efforts. What kind of security do you want?"

"Just go with the standard security for now, I may change it latter, as for the cost, just take it out of what I have."

"Very well, sign these." The goblin passed over a stack of papers and Harry signed them, after reading them through of course. Once that was done, the goblin took Harry's key, mumbled a few words, and the key glowed.

"There, that key now works only for your new vault. Anything else?"

"Yes, I would like to exchange these," pulling a hand full of gold items he changed with the Stone from his pocket "for actual Galleons, about two hundred will do, the rest you can just put in my new vault."

The goblin's eyes widened at the sight of the coins and then got a greedy look on his face.

"Of course, there will be a ten percent exchange fee."

Harry just waved it off and the goblin quickly took the gold. He returned a few minutes later with a sack of coins and a statement, saying he had put twenty-two Galleons into his new vault. Thanking the goblin, Harry and Rose left. Harry thought about what else he could turn into gold while at Hogwarts and how soon he would be able to get it into Gringotts. Rose of course questioned him as to where he got the gold but quieted when Harry offered to buy her a double chocolate ice cream cone.

The first stop was Quality Quidditch Supplies. Harry didn't want to keep using a school broom for Quidditch so he decided to buy a new one. He spotted the one he wanted right away, the new Nimbus 2001, a much better broom than Richard's Nimbus 2000. The broom nearly cleaned Harry out but at least he had his own broom. After that was school supplies.

Actually, it was just one book. With Harry having a modified schedule and taking no magic based classes, he didn't need to buy anything. However, he did sneak a peek at Richard's list and saw a bunch of books by Gilderoy Lockhart and _The Standard Book of Spells Grade 2_. Not wanting Lockhart's books, Harry just bought the spell-book. Rose went off to look for some books for herself while Harry looked around. The bookstore was very crowded as Lockhart himself was doing a book signing that day.

In the back of the store, Harry found little Ginny Weasley trying to get a book on a shelf just a little higher than her. She was standing on her toes and jumping in an attempt to reach it. It was very funny to watch. Wanting to have a little fun with her, Harry walked up behind her and easily grabbed the book she was trying to reach.

"Hey!"

Harry smirked down at her and held the book above his head, beyond her reach. That is, until he saw the title of the book.

"Jinxes and Hexes for the Younger Sibling?"

Ginny jumped up and grabbed the book while she could. "I just want to get revenge on my brother's for everything they've done to me. Percy's annoying with all his rules, Fred and George prank me all the time, and Ron won't shut up about how great your brother is."

"You don't like Richard, I would've thought you would have a giant crush on him or something."

"I did, my mum would tell me stories all about your brother and I dreamed of marrying him someday." She turned red as she talked. "When he and Ron became friends, I thought that maybe I could get him to notice me. However, over the years I've seen how annoying he is. That and your sister has told me all about him. I'm over my crush now."

Harry smiled, he could learn to like this girl. "Well, I may not be able to do magic, but I can give you some ideas and maybe I can sneak notes from some of my housemates that you could use."

"Really? That'd be great, thanks Harry!"

She quickly pulled him into a hug much like his sister's. It was over quickly and when she let go, Ginny was red again.

"Tell you what, you what someone to talk to, come find me in Slytherin. Better yet, try and get _into_ Slytherin."

Harry then left the girl alone. He returned to the front to see Richard shaking hands with Lockhart himself and get handed a large pile of books. Everyone in the store was clapping and a couple of flashes went off as someone took some pictures. As Richard walked away, Draco showed up.

"Famous Richard Potter, can't even go into the bookshop without making the front page."

"Ha!" said Ron, "I bet you're just jealous that you didn't get free books from Lockhart."

Draco snorted. "Like I'd want books from him, the idiot. Though I bet you could use them, I bet your parents will go hungry for months just to buy one set, let alone four, or is it five now?"

He turned towards Harry and looked at something behind him. Turning, Harry saw Ginny walk up, her own copy of Lockhart's books visible.

"Bet you're planning on marrying off your sister, huh Weasley? Hoping to get some money from the Potters, I doubt she's worth much, I mean look at those freckles."

He laughed and Ginny turned red from embarrassment. Ron and Richard dropped their books and started to move towards Draco when the boys' fathers showed up.

"Ron, no fighting. James, let's get out of here, it's too crowded."

"Well, well, Arthur Weasley and James Potter."

"Lucius" James said nastily.

Mr. Malfoy ignored Harry's father and continued to talk to Mr. Weasley. "Busy time at the Ministry I hear, I do hope they're paying you overtime."

He walked over to Ginny, grabbed one of her books and looked at it. "Apparently not. Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

"We have a different opinion of what disgraces the name wizard, Death Eater."

The only people who heard James's comment were his children, the Weasleys, and the Malfoys, everyone else was too busying trying to get Lockhart to sign their books.

"Ah James," Mr. Malfoy said with a smirk, "I was cleared of those charges, Imperious and all."

"Just goes to show what a weak wizard you are, doesn't it?"

Mr. Malfoy's face paled and his eyebrows narrowed. He thrust Ginny's book back at her and said, "Here girl, it's the best your father can give you." With that, both Malfoys stormed out of the shop. Both men fumed as they directed their kids out of the shop as well, James missing Harry and Rose completely.

The day before they were to leave for Hogwarts, Harry was laying on his bed going over all the notes he had on Alchemy. He believed that maybe he could use Apollo's venom with the Elixir and was curious as to what could happen. Just as he was going over the effects of Elixirs in other liquids, Rose stormed into his room.

"Bad news Harry, Dad says he has something to do tonight and all day tomorrow so he'll be unable to take us to Kings Cross tomorrow."

"What about Remus?"

"Full moon tonight, remember? We're going over to the Weasleys in a few minutes and they'll take us tomorrow and watch me."

Harry groaned. While with the Weasleys he had a better chance of going to Kings Cross, the boys weren't on Harry's list of favorite people. Ginny had made his interesting list and he planned to watch her this year but she was the only interesting one.

"Guess I better pack." Rose nodded and left.

Ten minutes later, Harry emerged from the floo at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley was greeting Richard and Rose while ignoring Harry. As soon as she was finished, Richard tore off upstairs while Ginny escorted Rose around. The Weasley matriarch then turned towards him.

"We don't have much room for you Harry so you'll have to room with Ron as well. Try not to annoy him or your brother too much while you're here."

With that she turned around and went into the kitchen. Angry, Harry picked up his trunk and pulled it towards the stair he saw Richard disappear at. Slowly, he dragged it up the stairs until he found the door labeled Ron's Room.

Harry was thankful that he was only at the Weasleys for a day, the red haired family was really annoying. The twins and Ron joined Richard in making his life hell by playing pranks on him every second they could. He now understood why Ginny wanted that book. Mrs. Weasley ignored him completely and simply loved Richard and Rose. Percy the Prefect and Mr. Weasley were nowhere to be seen as the former was in his room and the later was a work.

The next morning Harry awoke early, a simple feat as Ron's snores were really loud. He didn't know how anyone was able to sleep with that racket going on. Dressing quickly, Harry dragged his trunk downstairs and grabbed a bit of toast. The rest of the morning was entertaining to watch. The Weasleys were completely unable to get started in the morning and spent most of it looking for things they forgot to pack. Even Ginny, who Harry had told to pack early and had experienced mornings like this, still had quite a few things left to pack.

Once they did manage to get everything needed into their trunks and the trunks in the magically expanded trunk, they were beginning to run late. Squeezing into the back with the Weasley children and his brother, Harry looked towards the front where his sister and Ginny sat comfortably. Of course, they ran even more late when they had to return to the house three times for forgotten items.

"Molly dear," started Mr. Weasley.

"No Arthur, I will not allow you to fly this car to London."

"But there's this little button here that'll turn it invisible-"

"No!"

Harry was very interested in what they were talking about. Mr. Weasley had charmed the car to fly, that was against the laws he had made. When they finally did manage to make it to Kings Cross, they only had five minutes. Percy went through the barrier first, followed by Mr. Weasley and Rose, then the twins, and finally Mrs. Weasley and Ginny. Ron and Richard made to follow but when they reached the barrier, they crashed into it.

Harry quickly stopped his own trolley but not before it ran over Ron's wrist. The two boys got up, grumbling, and started to discuss what they were going to do as the Express had just left. Harry thought the best option was to wait for the Weasley parents to return but Ron got it in his head that they were allowed to do magic and that they should fly the car to school. As usual, Harry was ignored and was left by himself in the station with only his trunk and Hedwig. Hedwig!

Harry dragged his trunk over to an empty area, looked around to make sure, and opened the cage that held Hedwig. He didn't know why he had the cage, Hedwig was perfectly capable of flying to Hogwarts herself.

"What to get some revenge on Richard and Ron girl?"

The owl hooted happily, eager to get back on her former master. Harry opened his trunk and searched until he found a quill, some ink, and parchment. Then he wrote:

_Uncle Severus, _

_ It may interest you to know that my idiot brother Richard and his just as idiotic sidekick Ronald Weasley have taken a flying car from Kings Cross Station and started flying it to Hogwarts. How do I know this? I was forced to stay with the Weasleys last night and was with them. When the two idiots tried to cross the barrier onto Platform Nine and three quarters, it sealed itself, leaving them, and me, trapped. I am currently waiting on the muggle side so please send someone to help. _

_Harry_

He then gave the letter to Hedwig, who quickly took off. He knew that the letter would reach Hogwarts before the car as the boys were most likely to follow the Express while Hedwig would take the direct route. Also, who ever heard of a car out flying an owl?

It was a long time before anyone showed up. During that time, the Weasley parents appeared with Rose. When he explained everything, Mrs. Weasley went off on a rant about the flying car her husband charmed. They also said it was for the best as Harry shouldn't be going to Hogwarts in the first place as he was a Squib. They then told him to come along so that they could take him home. Harry refused, saying that he was staying and waiting for a Hogwarts professor to take him to the castle. Mrs. Weasley scoffed and led Rose away, though she did manage to hug Harry good-bye first.

It was late afternoon when Professor Snape himself showed up. He looked at Harry, smirked, thanked him for the letter, and then Apparated him and his trunk to the gates of Hogwarts. When they arrived, Snape levitated Harry's trunk up to the steps.

"Take your things to the dorms while I alert the Headmaster about our little situation. The password is Pure-blood. I expect you to be in the Great Hall at seven-thirty for the Start-of-Term Feast."

With that, Snape walked away. Harry easily carried his trunk down into the dungeons as Snape had made it lighter before he left. The Heir Dorms immediately opened for him once he entered the common room. Once he put his trunk at the foot of his bed, the lid popped open and Apollo appeared.

_{It's about time, what took you so long?}_

The snakes had been trapped in his trunk since he had left for the Weasleys. He didn't think the family would like the snakes in their house.

_{Wait a minute_, Artemis said also appearing, _it's too early for you to be at Hogwarts. I thought you were going to let us out on the train?}_

"The barrier closed for some reason so I was unable to get on the platform. Thankfully, Ron and Richard were trapped as well. They decided to fly to Hogwarts so hopefully they get into a lot of trouble."

Apollo snickered and crawled out of the trunk. He took his favorite spot by the fireplace and curled up while Artemis joined Harry on the bed. She listened as Harry read out of _The Standard Book of Spells_.

A quarter after seven, Harry left the Slytherin dorms for the Great Hall. A number of students were already there and more were coming in from the Main Entrance. Harry took a seat near to where the first years would sit while the rest of the second years sat farther down the table. Tracey quickly spotted him and hurried over.

"Where were you, I looked all over the train to find you."

Harry quickly and quietly told her about the barrier closing.

"Weird" she said, "I wonder why it closed." Harry just shrugged. Tracey leaned in whisper something in his ear. "Daphne was surprised when I told her I couldn't find you, she even looked a little sad. Maybe you two can make up."

Harry looked down the table to where Daphne sat with Pansy Parkinson. She must have felt Harry's eyes on her because she turned around. He caught a flash of something before she turned around with a huff.

"I don't think so Tracey, she still doesn't like me."

With a sigh Tracey went back over to her friend and Harry looked around. All the students were now seated. The elder Weasley boys looked worried while Professor Dumbledore looked upset. Professor Snape wasn't there so Harry assumed that Richard and Ron hadn't arrived yet.

Just then, the doors opened and Professor McGonagall entered with the new first years. Harry could easily spot Ginny Weasley near the middle of the group because of her hair. She looked very scared, even more so than her year-mates. She kept glancing around the Gryffindor table. Then she turned towards the Slytherin table and smiled slightly when she saw Harry. He smiled and waved at her and it looked like she cheered up a bit.

This year the Sorting Hat sang a song about the Founders' split and how sad it was that it happened as it divided the school. It encouraged the students to make new friends from the other houses even after it spoke of splitting up the new students. Harry joined the few Slytherins who clapped for the song but did so quietly.

The Sorting went by very slowly, the Hat seemed to take its time to carefully consider where to put each and every student. Finally, only Ginny was left and as she walked up to the stool, Harry could see her face was paler than ever. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see Percy puff up his chest and the twins with maniac smiles on their faces. The Hat took twice as long to place Ginny as any other first year, Harry could see it mumbling from his spot and Ginny's checks turn red at one point. Finally, the Hat called out "Slytherin!"

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><p><strong>Orignally I wanted to include the school's (and Weasley's) reaction as well as the first couple of days back, but I decided that the length was good and you guys have waited long enough for this update. See you guys next time.<strong>


	11. Back at Hogwarts

**To celebrate the opening of _Pottermore_, I decided to upload this chapter a little earlier than I had planned. Thank-you to all the reviews for the last chapter, it has been awhile hasn't it? I especially liked Luna the Loony's review. Keep reviewing and I'll post the next chapter as soon as I can, it's actually finished.**

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><p><em><span>Back at Hogwarts<span>_

The entire Hall was silent. Harry saw the three Weasleys looked completely shocked. Ginny herself was so pale you could count the freckles on her face. However, she jumped off the stool and slowly walked over to the Slytherin table. Harry made room for her next to him and she sat down. He gave her a smile but she didn't look up, only stared at her plate. After a minute, Professor Dumbledore stood and welcomed everyone.

"Welcome, welcome, welcome to Hogwarts. I have just a few words to say. First, the Forbidden Forest is just that and a reminder that no magic is to be used in the halls. Now, let the Feast begin."

Food appeared and everyone quickly grabbed what they could. Harry enjoyed this Feast much better than the one last year, this time he actually got a good amount of food. Ginny ate very little, she just pushed her food around her plate.

"You O.K.?"

She sniffed and Harry thought she was crying. The girl looked up and her brown eyes looked wet.

"I don't know, I'm afraid of what my parents will say when they find out."

"Hey," he said, wrapping an arm around her, "It'll be O.K., you'll see. You are still their daughter and they'll love you no matter what, I just know it. Besides, it's not all that bad being a Slytherin. I guaranty, in a couple of weeks you'll be glad you're a Slytherin."

Ginny sniffed again and gave a small smile before turning back to her food. Harry looked up and saw Professor Snape whispering in Dumbledore's ear. The old man then stood up, said something to McGonagall who followed, and the three left the Hall. Once the doors closed behind them, the talking around the Hall grew as everyone wondered what was going on. Harry smirked as they left as he was the only one who knew. As he looked towards the hourglasses he thought that it was a pity that there were no points so far, Gryffindor would've suffered greatly if there had been.

The three professors didn't return until near the end of the Feast. None of them looked very happy so Harry guessed that Richard and Ron weren't punished as much as Snape wanted. Whatever they were given, Harry hoped it was horrible.

Once the Feast ended, Harry joined the rest of the second years in walking towards the dorms while Ginny had to join the rest of the first years with the Prefects. He made good time and managed to get to the dorms before the first years. Harry plopped himself in one of the chairs by the fire and watched as the new Prefects instructed the new Slytherins. One or two looked his way, they no doubt heard about him, the squib in Slytherin.

When the Prefects finished, Harry leaned back and relaxed, it was good to be back at Hogwarts. Some of the other second years were seated nearby with Draco holding court.

"I wonder what had Dumbledore leave in the middle of the Feast?" said Pansy.

"Isn't it obvious" said Daphne. "It was Potter and Weasley, didn't you see that they were missing from the Feast?"

"Wonder what they did" said Theodore Nott.

"They flew a flying car to Hogwarts" said Harry without opening an eye. He could feel all eyes in the common room turn to him.

"How would _you_ know?" asked Draco.

Harry opened his eyes and leaned forward. Everyone was looking his way. Grinning, he told his story.

"I was there when they decided to do it. The barrier sealed itself before we could get on the platform. Being idiots, the two thought it would be a good idea to take the car Ron's father enchanted to fly and follow the train. I, of course, being the smarter twin, knew that was illegal and sent word with my owl to Professor Snape about the situation. He came and got me and was ready for the two Gryffindorks when, or if, they arrived."

No one said anything though one or two of the older students did look a little impressed.

"What are you doing here blood traitor?"

Harry turned. One of the new first years, a boy Harry only knew as Harper, was glaring at Ginny. Harry stood up and walked over.

"Problem?"

Harper glared at Harry but responded anyways.

"She's a blood traitor, how can she be in the noble house of Slytherin?"

"Obviously she holds some traits of a true Slytherin otherwise she wouldn't be here. Now run along to bed."

"You can't tell _me_ what to do Squib!" But he walked away anyways.

The entire house was staring at the duo. Ginny turned pink and fled up the stairs towards the girls' dorms. Harry just smirked lightly and walked over to the banner. _Time to remind them who they're dealing with_ he thought.

_{Open}_

Everyone in the common room jumped at the sound of Parseltongue. Harry smirked at the looks he was receiving and entered his dorm.

The next morning Harry met Ginny at the Slytherin table. The girl looked incredibly tired, like she hadn't slept at all last night. She did say a soft 'good morning' as she stirred her porridge. Harry grabbed his own bowl and encouraged her to eat of few bites before eating himself. The morning was cloudy and dull and it seemed to Harry to be a boring sort of day. That was, until a familiar voice roared throughout the Great Hall.

"RONALD WEASLEY!"

Everyone in the Hall turned towards the Gryffindor table. Sure enough, Ron Weasley was cowering under the yells of a Howler his mother had sent him. Several of the Slytherins were laughing and Harry himself had a large smile on his face. Then, the Howler turned towards the Slytherins.

"GINEVRA MOLLY WEASLEY, HOW DARE YOU GET SORTED INTO SLYTHERIN, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER AND I RAISED YOU BETTER. YOU HAVE DISGRACED OUR FAMILY'S GOOD NAME BY BEING SORTED INTO THAT DEN OF DARK WIZARDS. YOU WILL IMMEDIATELY ASK PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE TO RESORT YOU INTO THE NOBLE HOUSE OF GRYFFINDOR RIGHT THIS INSTANT YOUNG LADY!"

With that, the Howler burst into flames and Ginny into tears. No one stopped the girl as she fled from the Hall and even a few laughed. Harry scowled and rose to follow but Professor Snape arrived. He handed Harry his schedule, paused, looked towards the doors to the Great Hall, and then handed him a second before continuing on. Harry looked at the second schedule, it was Ginny's. Snape was giving him permission to go after her.

Not being need to be told twice, Harry ran after her. Using a lot of guess work, Harry followed the path he thought Ginny had taken in her distressed state. It led to the Slytherin common room. He had just entered when Ginny herself came down the stairs, dragging her trunk behind her.

"Get out of the way Harry!"

"And just where do you think you're going?"

"What does it look like, I'm leaving. You heard Mum, I'm disgracing our family just by being here, the best thing I can do is leave before I do anymore damage."

"And just how do you think you'll get back home?" When Ginny didn't respond, Harry continued. "Look, ignore what your mother said, you belong here, you belong in the house of snakes. I said it last night and I'll say it again, the Sorting Hat must have seen something in you that made you a Slytherin and so it made you one. Your mother's probably just upset about your brother stealing the car and is taking it out on you, deep down I'm sure she still loves you, you are her little girl."

Ginny grimaced at the 'little girl' comment but still didn't move.

"Look, you can't be Sorted again so just accept that you're a Slytherin and give it a chance. If, by the end of the month you still want to leave, I won't stop you, but just give it a month. Please, for me?"

Ginny still looked sad but nodded. Harry gave her her schedule sent her on her way. Looking at his own schedule, Harry saw he was supposed to be in Muggle Studies in a few minutes so he quickly grabbed his books and ran off. Professor Quimble was just as bad to Harry this year as he was last year and once again, he was singled out completely.

Harry's mood improved slightly after lunch when they had Double Potions with the Gryffindors. Harry was still making potions by himself now but they were still the best out of the entire classes. All the other classes weren't that different from last year, they were only slightly harder.

Friday evening, Harry returned to the common room to find Draco Malfoy and Marcus Flint in an agreement.

"I don't care what your father has donated, I'm not getting rid of him, he's the best player we've ever had!"

"He's a squib, wouldn't you rather want someone on the team who could do magic? It's a disgrace that we have him on the team anyways. Besides, I'm just as good _and_ I'm bringing the best brooms released yet."

"What's going on?" Harry asked.

The two turned towards Harry.

"Draco's father has donated seven Nimbus 2001 brooms to the Slytherin Quidditch Team. Draco himself also wants to be on the team, Seeker."

Harry turned towards Draco. "You trying to steal my spot by bribing the team?"

"I deserve that spot! I'm a much better flyer _and_ I can do magic."

"What does doing magic have to do with playing on a Quidditch Team?"

"Everything! It's a _wizard's_ sport, you need to be a wizard to play."

"Actually Draco, according to Professors Snape and Dumbledore, there is no rule against squibs playing on a Quidditch Team. They probably never thought that a squib would show interest."

"It doesn't matter!" yelled Flint. "Potter is our Seeker and that is final!"

"Hold on Flint" said Harry, "if Dracy wants to play, why not let him?"

"Wha…" was Flint's only reply as Draco smirked.

"I'd say, let us play one game each, whoever flies better gets to stay Seeker."

"Agreed" said Draco before Flint could say anything. The blonde just smirked and walked off. Flint stared after him before turning towards Harry.

"First practice is tomorrow morning, don't be late."

Harry wasn't. He showed up early to breakfast, tearing past Ginny who looked quite tired. He then grabbed his new broom and raced towards the Quidditch Pitch. The rest of the team was already there along with Malfoy, all holding their new Nimbus 2001s. When Draco saw Harry's he got a large scowl on his face.

"Where did _you_ get _that_?

"Bought it" he said simply.

Flint stopped any more conversation by waving his arm, summoning the team to follow him. As they walked onto the Pitch, Harry could see the Gryffindors were already practicing. Once they saw the Slytherins, the red players flew down and stomped over.

Flint!" bellowed the Gryffindor Captain Oliver Wood, "This is our practice time! We got up specially! You can clear off now!"

"Plenty of room for us all Wood."

"But I booked the field, I booked it!"

"Ah, but I have a note. 'I, Professor Severus Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch Field, owing to the fact that they need to train their Seekers."

"So you finally replaced my useless brother?" called Richard.

"Actually" Harry said, stepping around, "if you remember, I beat you last year easy."

"What do you mean Seekers?" asked Wood.

"He means me" said Malfoy, also stepping around.

"Aren't you Lucius Malfoy's son?" asked one of the twins.

"Funny you should mention Draco's father; let me show you the generous donation he's just given to the Slytherin Team."

Every single member of the Slytherin Team held out their new brooms, Harry included. The Gryffindors could do nothing but stare with their mouths hanging open.

"At least no one on the Gryffindor Team had to buy their way in" said a voice. Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley had joined them. "They got it on pure talent."

"Talent? Ha! My brother doesn't have any talent at all." The Slytherins laughed while Richard's face grew red.

"I'll show you talent you filthy squib" yelled Ron. "Eat slugs!"

He pointed his wand at Harry. Before he could even think about dodging, he fired a spell, but it didn't hit him. Instead, it blasted backwards and hit its caster instead. Ron was sent flying and landed on his back. The Gryffindors crowded around him and Harry could just see the boy cough up some slugs. None of the Slytherins could contain their laughter at this point and many had trouble standing up. The Gryffindors retreated while Richard and Hermione carried their friend off the field.

Five minutes later the laughing stop when Flint called out, "All right every, in the air!"

What followed was a gulling practice for Harry. Once again, he was the main target for every single Bludger, broom, and spell. It was made worse due to the fact that Malfoy was there as well and really wanted the Seeker position. Thankfully, he was so focused on cursing Harry that he didn't even try and look for the Snitch. An hour later and Harry had caught it six times while only being cursed four.

After practice, Harry went to lunch and then up to the library to work on his impossible Muggle Studies homework. Tracey joined him and asked to borrow his History notes, which he gave away without a second thought. After homework Harry grabbed the Alchemy book to double check his notes and make sure he got everything; once he had time we was going to work with more experiments with the Stone.

That night was the time and Harry tried to change something six inches long. During the summer he worked with nothing longer than one inch but now he wanted to go bigger. The larger an object the more work and time was needed. It was close to midnight when he finally managed it and was rewarded with a piece of gold that could easily buy him a new broom or two. Feeling like that was enough work for now, Harry rose to put the gold and Stone away when he heard it. A strange voice echoed, sounding eerily chilly.

_{Come… come to me… Let me rip you.. .Let me tear you.. .Let me kill you…}_

Harry recognized what it was the moment he heard it. Apollo and Artemis also heard it and perked up at the voice.

_{There's another snake here}_ said Apollo.

_{Not just another snake,_ said Artemis, _that sounds like a Basilisk}_

Harry knew what she was referring to; the Basilisk, the King of Serpents. The Basilisk was the world's largest and most deadly snake, capable of killing through its gaze or with its highly poisonous fangs. Its hide was highly resistant to magic and was capable of living for up to hundreds of years. If there was a Basilisk in the school, Harry was deeply concerned.

Harry was still thinking about the Basilisk the next morning when he went down to breakfast. Ginny was there, looking as tired as ever.

"Didn't get enough sleep last night?" he asked her. She shook her head. Harry was about to ask why when a voice shouted at him.

"Oh! Potter! You leave my sister alone! It's bad enough that she's with you slimy snakes but she doesn't need you sinking your fangs into her!"

Ron Weasley and Richard were making their way over, both with red faces. Ginny's eyes looked like they were tearing up so Harry gave her a one-armed hug.

"Bugger off Weasley, you're not welcome here."

"Didn't you hear me, leave my sister alone!"

"I'm just offering her some friendship seeing as she doesn't have any in this school."

"Why would she want to be friends with you, you're a squib and a filthy snake. Besides, she's got us, her family. Come on Ginny; let's get you away from them." He grabbed her arm and started to pull her away.

"Some family, your mother yelled at her just for being sorted into Slytherin, you and your brothers insult her and her house, and now you're trying to take her away from her only friend."

"Shut up Snake!" yelled Richard but Ginny wrenched her arm out of Ron's hand.

"No Ronald, Harry's right." She walked back over and stood next to Harry. Unknown to everyone, all of the Great Hall was now watching the exchange.

"All my life I've been told how bad and horrible Slytherins are and how great and noble Gryffindors are supposed to be but since I've been here it's _you_ Gryffindors who've been horrible while a Slytherin had been nothing but nice to me. Harry's been nothing but nice to since we've first talked during the summer, he's my only friend in this house. I'm a Slytherin Ronald; get it through your skull. You and every single one of our brothers have teased, tormented, and pranked me since I was little and I've wanted revenge. I'm tired of being poor and not getting nice things like every other person. The Sorting Hat said that I could do well in Slytherin and that they'd help me get all I ever wanted. I _chose_ to go into Slytherin and that's where I'm supposed to be."

With that, Ginny grabbed her things and stormed out of the Hall. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see some of the Slytherins looking pleased with the way Ginny acted. One of the first years even ran after her and reached her as she got to the doors. He had a feeling Ginny may have just made her first friend outside himself. The rest of the Hall was shocked into silence and could only stare after the only female Weasley.

"You did something to her, didn't you Squib?"

Harry turned. Ron was now facing him with his wand ready. Richard was also getting his wand out.

"And just how was I supposed to do that, I'm a _squib_, remember? I can't do any magic and no one else in the house would be willing, they don't like me very much. If fact, they don't like your sister as well so it wasn't them. If anyone is responsible for your sister's behavior it's you and your family."

And Harry stood up and left as well, leaving a cheerful Slytherin table and furious Ron and Richard behind. Looking at his watch, Harry found he still had some time before History so he went to the Library to learn more about Basilisks.

There wasn't much he didn't already know. With a length of greater than fifty feet and capable of living up to hundreds of years, the Basilisk was the King of Serpents. Its skin was just like a dragons', able to deflect a majority of spells, and could kill just about anything easily. It was rumored that only a Parselmouth was able to control the beast but as both the snake and ability was rare it was difficult to determine. The last know Basilisk, dead or alive, had been sighted more than four hundred years ago.

"Harry?"

Looking up, Harry saw Tracey standing before, looking quite nervous.

"I was wondering if I could borrow your History notes from last week."

"Sure, take them."

"Thank-you."

She took the rolls of parchment offered and ran off. That started a cycle, every week Tracey would ask for his notes and every week he would give them to her. It was strange because he never saw her with them afterwards. If fact, her grades in History stayed the same while Greengrass slowly did better. It was then he realized that Tracey wasn't getting the notes for herself but for Daphne instead. He wasn't bothered by it; in fact, he saw an excellent opportunity.

"Here are Daphne's notes for the week" he said as Tracey came by to pick them up.

"Wha..? How did you-"

"It wasn't hard" Harry told the shocked blonde. "Who else would you give your notes to?"

"You're not mad?"

"Not about you giving her my notes, only about the deception."

Tracey looked down, ashamed. "She really needed them, she only barely passed History last year and that was because I gave her the notes you lent me. Should would ask you for them herself but she's just too stubborn and asked me to do it as she thought you didn't like her. And there's the deal with her parents."

"What do you mean?"

Tracey looked around for eavesdroppers before sitting next to Harry and whispering. "You know that the Greengrasses are an old pure-blood family right? Well, they may not believe the same thing about muggles like the Malfoys and Blacks do but nearly all pureblooded families feel the same about squibs. When the article came out last year that you were attending Hogwarts, many families were terribly upset. Mr. Greengrass was furious that not only were you attending Hogwarts but that you also were a Slytherin _and_ friends with Daphne.

"When she went home for Christmas last year, her parents made her promise to stop being your friend and to never talk to you again. Daphne didn't have a choice and agreed, that's why she was so rude to you all of last term. She only told me on the train ride here after I told her I couldn't find you. She still likes you a little as a friend but she doesn't want to go against her family."

"I understand, tell Daphne that she can continue to have my notes. Also, tell her she should count herself lucky that I didn't try and mess with by changing some things _and_ that she owes me for this."

Tracey nodded. "I'll tell her. What do you want?"

"Nothing, for now." Harry leaned back in his chair, a wide grin on his face.

However boring History of Magic was, nothing was worse than this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts. Harry was working in the Slytherin common room for a change when all the Slytherin second years walked in. Tracey said that she was jealous that he didn't have to take Defense and everyone else agreed. Harry learned that Lockhart was a complete idiot and didn't teach them a thing. For his first class he gave them a quiz about himself and then released a cage full of pixies that destroyed the classroom. Now he was just reading out of his books. The only good thing about it was that Richard had been forced to play the roles of all the creatures he had defeated, to the amusement of the Slytherins.

With the end of September came the beginning of October and the rainy season. For the first half of the month it rained nonstop, day in and day out. Quidditch practices were miserable for everyone, even more so for Harry. With the team already down from the endless rain they cheered up the only way they knew how, by trying to hex him. The rain made it more difficult for Harry to see incoming Bludgers, spells, and brooms as Malfoy had taken to trying to ram him every practice. Harry didn't see why he had to do it; somehow Malfoy had been chosen to play the Gryffindor game, the game Harry wanted.

The only good thing that came out of this was that Harry didn't have to play in the rain as much. It was forecasted that it would rain the rest of the month and that it would be worse on the day of the actual Gryffindor/Slytherin game. Even without him playing that game, Flint demanded that Harry practice with the team, whether to be ready to go next or so that they could hex him Harry didn't know.

With the rain also came mud and Harry was always covered in it after practice, because of the number of times he was knocked off his broom. Filch, the caretaker, hated mud and Harry suspected that the only reason he was never punished was because he informed Filch of the exact times the Gryffindor team was practicing, that way he could bust the whole team and make _them_ clean the halls of mud. Harry also suspected that Filch hated him more than any other student. All the Slytherins knew that Filch was a squib and with Harry actually attending classes at Hogwarts, he believed that Filch was jealous of him.

October passed quickly and before Harry knew it, it was Halloween. Dozens of rumors spread throughout the castle as to what the Halloween Feast would be like. Harry was very much excited, especially since the last one was canceled due to the troll last year. Hopefully there wouldn't be anything to ruin it this time around.

Just like last year the Feast included candy filled pumpkins and treats of every design, color, and flavor. Remembering last year, Harry did his best to keep as much sugar away from Tracey as possible but with every sweet he managed to get away from her, another two took its place. Finally Harry gave up and just started to enjoy the Feast. The dancing skeletons Dumbledore booked were hilarious and preformed numerous song and dance numbers.

As desert appeared, Harry noticed that Ginny was missing. He looked around for a minute or two before asking her new friend Rachel Selwyn. According to her, she hadn't seen Ginny since after Charms class when she claimed to be not feeling well. She was most likely in her dorm resting. Harry made a note to bring some food back for her.

When the Feast ended, Harry grabbed as much food as he could carry and joined the rest of the Slytherins. The passage to the dungeons was blocked so they had to take another route, mainly going up a couple set of stairways just to go down. Sometimes, Hogwarts was weird. They were half-way up the second staircase when Harry heard the Basilisk again.

_{Blood…I SMELL BLOOD…time to kill…TIME TI KILL!}_

He nearly dropped what he was carrying. From what he could hear, the Basilisk was moving through the walls and going up, in the same direction they were going. Fearing that it would attack his classmates, Harry shoved the food in Rachel's hands and took off. He pushed and shoved his way to the front, ignoring the calls and insults behind him, and ran ahead. He could hear a couple people behind him but he didn't turn around to stop them, his sole focus was to get to the Basilisk. Maybe he could stop it before the rest of the Slytherins reached the corridor it was in.

Harry turned one last corridor and stopped dead. The Basilisk wasn't there, instead there was something much worse. Richard, Ron, and Hermione stood alone in the corridor in ankle deep water, shock all over their faces. Hanging on a torch behind them was the caretakers cat Mrs. Norris, stiff as a board. Above that, written in what Harry thought was blood, were several haunting words.

THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.


	12. The Chamber of Secrets

_The Chamber of Secrets_

"Enemies of the Heir beware! You'll be next Mudbloods!"

Harry turned around. Behind him stood every single member of Slytherin house, Draco Malfoy in the front. A group of Ravenclaws blocked the corridor from the other end. Richard, Ron, and Hermione were trapped were they stood and looking none too innocent.

What's going on here? What's going on?"

Argus Filch arrived, looking just as grumpy as always. He took one look at the scene and gasped in horror.

"My cat! What's happened to my cat? What did you do to her Potter?"

He started forward, arms out like he was going to strangle Richard but was stopped by the arrival of Dumbledore.

"Argus!"

In second he swept forward, detached Mrs. Norris, dismissed everyone, and called Filch, Richard, Ron, and Hermione to his office. As the Slytherins walked, several glanced Harry's way, a look of fear, confusion, and surprise on their faces. Malfoy himself wore a triumphant gleam, as though he had just been appoint Head Boy. Harry himself hung back a bit, thinking about what had happened and trying to make heads or tails of it when he ran into Ginny.

"Ginny? I thought you were in your dorm sleeping?"

The red-head looked a little scared and her face was paler than he had seen before. Harry thought it best to get her to the Hospital Wing, she either wasn't sleeping or wasn't eating very well. He hoped that she wasn't getting sick.

"I…I was in the Hospital Wing, I wasn't feeling very good."

Harry thought that she might be hiding something but before he could confront her about it, they reached the Slytherin dorms. Once inside, Ginny raced up to her dorm where Harry couldn't follow. Harry stared after her but then realized that the majority of the house was staring at _him_. Feeling uncomfortable, Harry made to retreat to his own dorm.

"Hold it Potter!"

One of the braver seventh years had stepped forward.

"Were you the one who attacked the cat?"

"And what makes you think I'm the Heir?" Harry asked.

"You speak Parseltongue, just like Salazar Slytherin himself, you're in his heir's dorms, and we know about those two snakes you have."

Harry eyes grew wide. "How do you know about them?"

"We overheard those two talking about them a couple of times."

He was pointing to Tracey and Daphne. They both looked down and blushed as Harry glared at them.

"So, are you the Heir of Slytherin or aren't you?"

Harry didn't answer, he just walked in his dorm and left everyone staring after him. Although Harry neither confirmed nor denied the accusations, all of Slytherin house gave him a wide berth. They were overly polite and a few were friendlier than normal.

As the whole house knew about them, Harry decided that Apollo and Artemis didn't have to hide anymore and gave them free reign of the dorms. Apollo enjoyed this immensely; he considered a day wasted if he hadn't hissed menacingly at a dozen people, snapped at the heels of half-a-dozen more and curled up in Daphne's lap while she was studying. It was these actions that made more people believe that Harry really was the Heir.

Artemis also liked the extra freedom but didn't abuse it like Apollo. She could be seen slithering about the dorms without a care in the world but left everybody alone if they did her. She sometime let people pet her and enjoyed curling up in front of the fire in the evening.

Harry also talked more freely in Parseltongue, frightening a handful of people as he did, he enjoyed this. Most of the time however, his calls were to Apollo, telling him to stop threatening the other members of his house. Ginny was the most affected by these events and would jump about a foot in the air whenever Harry spoke in Parseltongue or saw either Apollo or Artemis. Harry assumed this was being raised to believe that Parseltongue was a dark ability and that she had to get used to it. She, along with Tracey and Daphne, were also given a fair amount of respect as they were Harry's friends, sort of.

The only person whose actions didn't change was Draco Malfoy's. He would get a furious look anytime someone would mention Harry being the Heir or was treated with respect. Although he didn't say it where Harry could hear, he knew that Malfoy was whispering about how a squib couldn't be the Heir of Slytherin and that Harry was false. Once, Harry thought he mentioned his father, Lucius Malfoy.

Oddly, none of this ever reached outside the Slytherin Dorms, the whole school thought that Harry's brother Richard was really the Heir. Their 'evidence' was the fact that Richard was in the corridor where the cat was found, he had several bad runs in with Filch over mud, and everyone knew he hated his squib brother. Richard's defense was that someone had called out to him and he had followed, a story Ron and Hermione supported. Most people just thought they were covering for him.

Of course, for the next few days the Chamber of Secrets was on everybody's mind. People who read _Hogwarts, A History_ told their friends while those who hadn't rushed to reserve a copy for themselves. On Friday, the topic came up in a place Harry never thought it would, History of Magic. They were learning about the International Warlock Convention of 1289 when Hermione Granger, the only person other than Harry able to stay awake long enough to take notes, raised her hand. The ghost professor Binns was so shocked that it took a while to actually get him to tell them about the Chamber.

"You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago — the precise date is uncertain — by the four greatest witches and wizards of the age. The four school Houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution.

"For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more selective about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. After a while, there was a serious argument on the subject between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school.

"Reliable historical sources tell us this much, but these honest facts have been obscured by the fanciful legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing. Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic.

"The whole thing is arrant nonsense, of course. Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most learned witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to frighten the gullible. Now, if you please, we will return to solid facts, not fanciful legends."

This tale did nothing but give more proof to the Slytherins that Harry really was the Heir. Harry of course, figured that the 'horror' within the Chamber was the Basilisk he was hearing. But it didn't make sense, Slytherin wanted to remove the muggle-borns and Basilisks kill, they don't petrify. Something more was going on here and Harry vowed to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

><p>The next morning neither Harry nor Ginny were eating very much; Harry because he wasn't going to be playing, and Ginny because she said her stomach was hurting her. She was, once again, feeling sick. Harry told himself that after the match he was going to take Ginny to the Hospital Wing. Ginny left to go get her diary and Tracey took her place.<p>

"Harry, what really happened to your magic?" she asked. Harry was so shocked that he choked on her juice. Coughing, he looked around and saw no one around them.

"Why?"

Tracey bit her bottom lip before continuing. "I've been thinking about this whole Heir of Slytherin thing. I have my doubts about you being the Heir, but you have to admit that whole Parseltongue thing is weird, but if you aren't, wouldn't you be the next likely target for the Heir? I mean, they went after Filch first."

"To tell you the truth Tracey, I don't know if I'm a target or not. I told you last year that I had my magic taken from me. What happened was that after the attack, Richard's magic levels were low, so low that is was believed that he might die if he didn't get any magic soon. The only thing the Healers could think of was a really old and semi-dark ritual that would channel magic from one magical baby to another, but only if they were really close in age and related.

"If they went through with the ritual, my brother would gain my magic but then I would be the one at risk of dying from magic loss. My parents believed my brother worth it and went ahead with the ritual. As you can see, Richard got the magic he needed to live while I became a so called 'squib'. But I swear, that isn't the end of it, I will one day find a way to get my magic back and have revenge on my brother and father. I will not rest until it happens."

Harry spoke mostly to himself the last couple of sentences and Tracey didn't think he really noticed that she was there. He got a sort-of faraway look in his eyes and just stared ahead. Tracey just nodded her head, like Harry could see her, and left the table. She had a lot to tell Daphne.

As the two girls were talking, a fifth year overheard them and told his friends. Another fifth year heard them and told her friends. Within ten minutes, all of Slytherin house knew how Harry had become a squib. To many, this offered further proof that Harry really was the Heir, he was getting revenge on muggle-borns for being able to come to Hogwarts to practice magic while he was not.

Soon, Harry was making his way to the Quidditch Pitch with the rest of Slytherins House. The rain was light but luckily he managed to squeeze under Daphne's umbrella with her and Tracey. Over by the Gryffindor side, Harry could see his father, proudly wearing Gryffindor red, seated next to a strange blonde woman. Rose wasn't with him so he assumed that she couldn't come this time.

With a blast from Madam Hooch's whistle, the game began. Slytherin quickly took control of the Quaffle and scored, but Harry's eyes were on Richard. For some reason, a single Bludger was chasing after him and no matter how many times or how hard the Weasley twins hit it, it always come back for Richard. Soon, the Beaters were focusing solely on Richard, leaving the other Bludger free to attack their Chasers. That, combined with the Slytherins' brooms, the score was eighty to ten with Slytherin in the lead by the time the Gryffindor Captain called for a time out.

When play resumed the rogue Bludger once again took off after Richard. He was forced to do a series of impressive acrobats just to avoid it. Seeing Richard busy, Harry knew that this was the perfect time to search for the Snitch so he looked over at Malfoy to see what he was doing. The fool was just sitting up in the air, laughing his face off, while the Snitch was hovering right above his head. Malfoy was too busy laughing that he hadn't seen it, the idiot.

The crowd groaned. Harry turned and saw that the Bludger had finally managed to score a hit on Richard, whose right arm was now broken. While the Bludger came around for another attack, Richard tore off towards Malfoy, apparently he saw what Malfoy didn't. The Slytherin Seeker rushed for the ground to avoid his Gryffindor counterpart while said boy chased the Snitch for only twelve seconds before catching it. The game was over, one hundred and sixty to one hundred and twenty. Gryffindor won.

The game may have been over but the Bludger wasn't done, it flew right at Richard, who was on the ground. Before it connected however, it blew up. Harry saw Hermione Granger and Ron running onto the field, Professor Lockhart behind them. They, along with the rest of the Gryffindor Team, crowded around Richard. A few second later and a scream sounded. Harry could see Richard hobbling away, clutching his right arm in a strange way.

Harry later learned that Lockhart had somehow removed all the bones in Richard's arm. From what he understood, his father wasn't too happy about that and could be seen shouting at Lockhart afterwards. The Slytherins found this funny though, Richard losing all the bones in his right arm, so they laughed about it to forget about the lose the just suffered. James Potter wasn't the only one doing some yelling that day, Flint also yelled at Malfoy because the boy didn't see the Snitch when it was right in front of him. Harry's chances at being the permanent Slytherin Seeker grew.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Quidditch was thrown from everyone's mind. Another attack had happened during the night, a Gryffindor first year was petrified. Again, more suspicion was thrown on Richard as the first year, Colin Creevey, was a picture fanatic and was always taking Richards picture, even when he didn't want the boy to.<p>

Harry wasn't one of the people who suspected Richard of opening the Chamber of Secrets, but he did suspect Richard of doing something else. During Potions a few weeks later, Richard had to have played one of his pranks because suddenly, Harry's potion exploded, drenching most the Slytherins in Swelling Solution. It took ten minutes for Harry, and the rest of the class, to deflate and after they did, Snape fished firework remains out of his cauldron. Although there was no proof, both Harry and Snape suspected Richard. All the proof Harry needed came after class when Richard sent him a smug look.

Harry got his revenge a week later. A Dueling Club had been set up and everyone was excited to go. Harry, unable to go do to his squib status, let slip a particular hex that Richard had trouble with. From the look on Malfoys face, he knew that he was going to use it. Harry actually was glad he wasn't going, this was the perfect time to practice some magic; he hadn't done so in a long time.

It took a lot of work but Harry had finally managed the work the unlocking spell and the fire-making spell. The former wasn't very strong and could only unlock doors that weren't magically reinforced while the latter could only get a very small flame. It wouldn't burn anything but Harry was pleased.

Afterwards, he was relaxing in the common room when all the Slytherins at the Dueling Club returned, many looking furious. Malfoy himself was dragged in by a burly looking seventh year, thrown next to the stairs leading up to his dorm, and told to go to bed. Confused, Harry waited until Tracey joined him to ask what happened.

"Malfoy, that's what. He got selected by Professor Snape to have a demonstration duel against Richard. It actually started out pretty good with him using that spell you mentioned. Then the fool had to go and use the snake summoning spell. He summoned a cobra and the idiot couldn't control it. Lockhart tried to vanish it but just ended up angering it even more. It ended up biting your brother and a couple of other students before Professor Snape managed to vanish it. Now everyone thinks Draco is the Heir."

Indeed, half the school was talking about how Draco Malfoy was the Heir of Slytherin. Very few people needed convincing, his attitude towards muggle-borns and the fact that he thought himself superior to every help. His 'victims', as the school was calling them, were Hufflepuffs Justin Finch-Fletchley and Hannah Abbott along with Richard. Rumors were they were now petrified. The Slytherins were upset with Malfoy over the snake summoning incident, he had lost them fifty points and had to do a week's worth of detention for endangering his classmates like that.

It was during one of these times that another attack happened, the ghost of Gryffindor was petrified. The ghost was found after classes let out in the middle of a hall all black and smoky. Many people were terrified, what sort of creature could do that to a ghost, they wondered. Harry himself had a theory.

Since Nearly Headless Nick was already dead, if he ran into a Basilisk the stare wouldn't kill him. That had to be the answer. It also brought to the front of his mind how the Basilisk stare could do other effects. Mrs. Norris was found near a puddle of water and everyone knew that Creevey always had his camera with him, could that have protected him from the gaze? Harry knew that Richard was already on the hunt for the Heir, hoping to get himself some more fame, maybe it was time Harry did his own sleuthing.

With the attack on Nearly Headless Nick, nearly everyone rushed to book seats on the Hogwarts Express for Christmas. Harry didn't blame them, the whole castle was flooded with fear, even the ghosts and pure-bloods were scared. Aside from Richard and his friends, the only people staying at Hogwarts over break were Harry, Draco, and a few other Slytherins.

Christmas was rather enjoyable. Rose sent him, Apollo, and Artemis little green hats to wear. Harry had to force Apollo's on his head as the snake refused to wear it. Artemis had a laugh over the ordeal. She had also sent a strange letter.

_Happy Christmas Harry, _

_ I can't say much because Father has forced me to agree not to until Richard comes home but I think he already knows. We have a big problem here and I can't wait until you come home so I don't have to suffer alone. _Please_, come home soon. Also, send me pictures of Apollo and Artemis wearing their hats, I want to see. I thought that they would enjoy them seeing as you say it gets cold in the dungeons around this time. Say Hi to Tracey for me. _

_Rose_

Harry was curious as to what Rose was referring to but he couldn't find out until summer so he thought it was best not think about it. Tracey had found a book all about snakes and their magical properties that she thought Harry might like. Something interesting he found was that snake venom was an important ingredient in some of the most powerful poisons and antidotes. He wondered how Apollo's venom would shape one of the mentioned potions. Remus had sent him a pair of gloves for day wear around the castle that were charmed to keep wearer's hands warm even in the coldest of environments.

Christmas dinner was simply amazing that year; the turkeys were mouthwatering and the potatoes were to die for. Harry couldn't help himself for staying for an extra helping of pudding but even he decided enough was enough when only Crabbe, Goyle, Ron, and Richard were the only ones remaining in the Hall besides him. Quickly retreating to the common room, Harry dashed into his dorm to grab the snake book and his Potions book. He wanted to compare notes on various potions that used snake venom or similar. Both the snakes were comfortably curled up in front of the fire asleep.

Sitting in front of the fireplace in the common room, Harry was left alone. Only the Prefect Gemma Farley was still in the common room, everyone else was up in their dorms. Harry looked up when the passage into the dungeon opened to reveal Draco escorting his thugs inside. The blonde then ran up to his dorm to retrieve something. Crabbe and Goyle's eyes locked onto Harry's and the two boys glared at him. This surprised Harry as usually the two barely glanced in his direction. When Draco came back, Harry could hardly focus as something seemed off with Draco's friends.

Harry overheard all of Malfoys comments. First he insulted the Weasleys for being poor and blood traitors, the Creevey and his obsession with Richard, and then he went off on how Dumbledore was the worst headmaster to ever grace Hogwarts' hall for letting in 'slime like mudbloods and squibs'. Harry could see Draco look his way as he said it. However, the most important piece of information came after that.

"Father won't tell me anything about the last time the Chamber was opened either. Of course, it was fifty years ago, so it was before his time, but he knows all about it, and he says that it was all kept quiet and it'll look suspicious if I know too much about it. But I know one thing — last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, a Mudblood died. So I bet it's a matter of time before one of them's killed this time… I hope its Granger."

Harry quickly remembered what Voldemort's first Horcrux was, a diary he bought in muggle London. He used the death he caused by opening the Chamber of Secrets to make the Horcrux. How could he have been so stupid? A couple of things made sense now, like how Draco was always upset about everyone thinking Harry was the Heir, he knew he wasn't because his father must have told him the truth. Malfoy must have also known that the Chamber would be opened, but not the who.

If the Chamber was being opened, who was doing it? Last time it was Voldemort, but he was dead; it had to be someone with the knowledge of the Chamber and could speak Parseltongue. As Harry thought, he developed a theory, the Horcrux Voldemort made from the Chamber must be responsible, that meant the diary Horcrux was here, at Hogwarts, he had to get it. The diary, combined with his scar, and the Diadem later, would give Harry half of the remaining bits of Voldemort's soul.

"Ho!"

Crabbe's voice sounded weird. Harry turned towards Malfoy's group again. Malfoy had just said something about his family having their own secret chamber and Crabbe had found that interesting. Goyle and Draco stared at Crabbe, who blushed. But that wasn't all, slowly, parts of his hair turned red and his face looked weirder than normal. Goyle was also changing. His hair was also turning red and on his check was an X-shaped scar, the same scar Richard had.

The boys jumped up and ran for the entrance. Harry also stood and shouted _{Seal the room}_. Gemma and Malfoy jumped at the Parseltongue and looked his way. 'Crabbe' and 'Goyle' also jumped and Goyle looked his way. He must have seen the furious look on Harry's face because he grabbed Crabbe and ran for the door. The two reached it but it wouldn't open, it was sealed just like Harry commanded.

The two boys banged on the door, trying to get out and away, but it wouldn't budge. When they realized that they were trapped, they turned around and saw not only Harry walking towards them, but Gemma, Malfoy, and a couple older students who had just come down the stairs. Before their very eyes, Crabbe and Goyle changed from two frightened Slytherins into two red-hair, frightened Gryffindors in Slytherin robes.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here, a couple of lions in the Snake Den. Hello dear brother and sidekick."

They Slytherins laughed and the boys' faces paled.

"You…you…you speak Parseltongue?"

Harry ignored that. "Now, since you're trapped here, the question is, who to do with you?"

Please, don't hurt us." Ron begged.

"I say we should get Professor Snape and let him deal with these two."

Richard's face paled even more. "Please, whatever you do, don't get Professor Snape."

Their begging was pitiful to look at. One of the students made to move past the boys to get Snape, but Harry held his arm out to stop him.

"Hold on. Alright boys we'll make you a deal, do as we say and we won't get Professor Snape."

Some of the Slytherins looked unhappy about not getting Snape but others were already thinking up embarrassing things to make the boys do. Richard and Ron were dragged into the middle of the common room while someone else went to go get a camera and get the remaining members of Slytherin House so all could see. Ginny was shocked to see her brother but quickly accepted the idea of embarrassing him.

First, the boys were stripped of their robes, leaving them only in their underwear. They were then forced to kneel before Draco like a servant and kiss the back of his hand. One of the girls returned with a couple extra pairs of the uniform and they were forced into them to act like two giggling girls and kiss each other. Each Slytherin had their own thing for the boys to do and each and every idea cause the Slytherins to roar with laughter.

"What's going on in here?"

Everyone turned to see Professor Snape enter the common room, Gemma Farley behind him. The Slytherins stepped back to allow Snape to view Richard and Ron, still in the girl outfits.

"Potter! Weasley! What are you doing out of your dorms after curfew, and in the Slytherin Dorms none the less? Fifty points from Gryffindor each! And I see you're not wearing the correct uniform, another fifty points!"

"Professor," Harry said, stepping forward, "I witnessed these two trying to escape the common room after sneaking in. I believe they used Polyjuice Potion and their time was up. The room sealed itself before they could make their escape."

Snape's grin sent chills down many of the student's backs. "Illegally using a banned potion are we boys, that's fifty more points you lost. And no doubt you used ingredients you stole from my private stores, I'll take another fifty. Who were they disguised as Potter?"

"Crabbe and Goyle sir."

"Dunderheads, I'll be having a talk with those two. No doubt you also attacked them to get what you needed to change into them. And seeing as they aren't here you probably hid them somewhere. Fifty points each for attacking another student. Come with me, we're going to the Headmaster's office where you can explain yourselves."

"Professor?" Snape turned back towards Harry. "These two aren't good enough to brew a potion as complex as Polyjuice, they must've had help. Hermione Granger had to have brewed it for them but as she's not here, I take it something went wrong with her own batch."

Snape nodded. "Very good Mr. Potter, those are excellent guesses. Take fifty points for Slytherin for your fast actions to stop these two from escaping and for providing me more information about this. You two, you will take me to where you brewed this potion and to Miss Granger. You were warned at the beginning of the year what would happen to you if you broke more rules, now I can finally expel you."

As the wall closed behind Snape, everyone could hear his joyous laughter echoing off the walls.


	13. The Heir of Slytherin

_The Heir of Slytherin_

When the school came back from Christmas it was to discover that Richard Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger had been caught brewing an illegal potion and breaking into the Slytherin Dungeon. The Gryffindor Golden Trio had lost a total of three hundred and fifty points. Richard and Ron got a month's worth of detention and were banned from extra-curricular activities. Richard was actually kicked off the Gryffindor Quidditch Team so he was unable to play for the rest of the year.

Granger didn't have it as bad, she was only guilty of stealing the ingredients and brewing the potion. As she only stole the ingredients and brewed the potion she didn't break as many rules as the boys did and so wasn't as guilty. But she was also stuck in the Hospital Wing for week as her potion had cat hair; her faced was covered in black fur and she had grown cat ears and a tail, Madam Pomfrey seemed to think that was punishment enough.

Needless to say, the three went to the very bottom of the popularity ladder when it was found out. Gryffindor was all but out of the Quidditch Cup without Richard and the only way for Gryffindor to win the House Cup was to pull off another miracle like last year. Snape was immensely pleased as Dumbledore didn't have a choice but to punish them, though he didn't expel them. Ron also got another Howler from his mother, stating that he was to spend the following summer at his Great Aunt Muriel's and wasn't allowed to see or write to his friends.

Harry, for his part, was a hero. In spotting and catching the Gryffindors, he netted Slytherin seventy points, putting them in the lead for the House Cup. The Slytherins who had gone home over the break were jealous of those who stayed but they did enjoy the pictures that were taken. Even Snape seemed to enjoy them and it was rumored that he sent a copy to James Potter, threatening to anonymously send it to the _Daily Prophet_.

Of course, Harry didn't come out of the encounter unscathed. Right away, Richard began telling anyone who would listen that Harry was a Parselmouth. This had the desired effect of making the whole think that he was the Heir of Slytherin. Once again, the school needed very little evidence; he was a Slytherin, could speak Parseltongue, and was rumored to hate muggle-borns because they represented what he wasn't.

Apparently the rumors were rumors were enough for Dumbledore because a few days after Harry was revealed a Parselmouth, he was called into the Headmaster's office. A nervous Harry sat as he was kindly questioned about his ability. Dumbledore recognized that being a Parselmouth didn't make one dark, but the connection between it, Slytherin, and Voldemort's opening of the Chamber worth investigating. He was questioned about how long he was able to use Parseltongue, how well he could speak it, and the location of his whereabouts during the attacks.

Harry answered the question truthfully but left out as much as he could, he didn't want Apollo or Artemis to be discovered or the fact that he had part of Voldemort's memories. The problem with Voldemort's memories of the Chamber was that the only thing in it was that fact that it existed, not the location or anything else. For that, Harry believed he would need to actually find the Chamber or get the memories from another Horcrux.

However, something in the way Harry acted or said something must have made Dumbledore suspicious. During the questioning, he felt a small prick in the back of his head. Voldemort's memories quickly identified it as a Legilimency probe, Dumbledore was trying to read his mind! Harry had not researched this branch of magic but was able to lightly protect himself by thinking heavily on the memories he wanted Dumbledore to see. Apparently Dumbledore just wanted to see how truthful Harry was. Either Harry was successful in fooling Dumbledore or the professor didn't dive too deep.

When Harry left the office, he promised himself to start practicing Occlumency, the defense against Legilimency. The best way to practice it was to have a teacher use Legilimency on you while you were building your barriers. The only other person Harry knew who could perform Legilimency other than Dumbledore was Snape, but as Harry didn't want either man peering into his mind, the next best way was to slowly build up his defenses.

With traditional Occlumency training, a learner would only take a month or two to build a good foundation. By himself, it would take Harry the better part of a year to do that. But seeing as he had no choice, he would have to begin as soon as possible. Both Snape and Dumbledore would question why a twelve year old was studying Occlumency. If they discovered him, they would mostly likely try and stop him.

Harry was so lost in thought on the walk back from the Headmaster's office that he took a wrong turn. Harry only realized this when he hear voices. Up ahead, two older students were picking on a blonde first year. Harry never liked bullies, it reminded him too much of the way his father and brother acted and the way the Slytherins acted towards him last year, so when he saw the students yelling at the girl and calling her 'Loony', Harry snapped.

"Hey!"

The two students looked his way. They took one look at him and their faces paled, then, they ran. Harry supposed the school thinking he was the Heir was good for something as he approached the crying first year. As he got closer, Harry saw that she was a Ravenclaw and was holding something close to her chest tightly.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked as he kneeled down. The girl looked up at him and Harry was amazed that her silvery grey eyes didn't hold any fear.

"No" she said. She held out her hands and Harry saw a broken bracelet. "They broke my mother's bracelet, it's the only thing I have of hers."

She then broke out into more tears and hugged the bracelet again.

"Why do they do this?" Harry asked as he sat beside her.

"Because they think I'm 'Loony'. Just because I believe in creatures they don't doesn't make me Loony."

"Hey, stop crying. Let's find a professor, I'm sure they can fix your mother's bracelet…uh?"

"Luna, my name's Luna Lovegood."

"O.K. Luna, let's go find a professor."

The two stood and began their search. It didn't take long. Professor Flitwick found them right away, apparently the two girls who were teasing Luna alerted him that Harry was making another attack. He repaired Luna's bracelet, awarded Harry ten points, and left to punish the girls for lying and for picking on a younger student. Harry meanwhile, took Luna back to her dorms.

"Thanks Harry, for your help. No one else would've done that for me."

"I couldn't let them continue to pick on you. Besides, I hate bullies."

"Me too. I wish I had someone like you around to protect me from them Harry, you know, like a friend. I don't have any friends."

"Tell you what Luna, you can be my friend, that way they won't pick on you anymore."

Harry suddenly found himself engulfed in a large hug. He returned it awkwardly before Luna whispered 'thank-you' and skipped off. Within minutes, everybody knew that Luna was now under Harry's protection and that to tease her was to risk being petrified. Harry smirked during dinner as those around him whispered about it. Ginny, who was looking very happy and healthy today, smiled from her seat next to him.

"I'm glad you decided to befriend Luna Harry, she really needed some."

"You know her?"

Ginny nodded. "She and her father live over the hill from the Burrow. We used to be friends when we were little and played at each other's houses a lot. That is, until her mother died a couple of years ago. After that, we spoke only a few times. The death of her mother hit her really hard, especially since she saw it happen. She started to become really close to her father, the editor of _The Quibbler_, and pick-up some of his ideas. Since you're friends now, I think I'll restart our friendship, for old-time's sake."

"You're looking better Ginny, beat whatever bug you had?"

"Yep, I think I'm finally over it for good, and I feel a lot better too now that it's gone."

It certainly showed, after that day Ginny was in high spirits. She reconnected with Luna and became almost like sisters. She also extended her circle of friends in Slytherin to include her fellow first years Bridget Tripe and Roy Hamilton. Her spell work also improved. Before she was casting only reasonably well but now she was starting to show that she'd be a powerful witch in the future.

Harry himself was busy. His free time was spent working on his magic, experimenting with the Stone, Quidditch, Occlumency, and trying to figure out where the Chamber was. His best bet was to try and follow the Basilisk's voice and maybe he'd find either the entrance or the diary Horcrux. Unfortunately, since the attack on the Gryffindor ghost, whomever was opening the Chamber had taken a break. That left Harry with one other option.

Only a select number of teachers were around fifty years ago when the Chamber was opened last time. The fact that he, the suspected Heir, was going around asking about it wouldn't look too good. The ghosts were the only option left as they had been here for years, some of them since the time of the Founders. He started with the Slytherin ghost the Bloody Baron but he was too busy moaning and groaning to answer any questions. The Grey Lady of Ravenclaw wouldn't even let Harry get close to her as she just glided away. The Fat Fair of Hufflepuff just told Harry to leave the past where it was.

This was the response Harry got from every ghost in Hogwarts. They either told him to forget about it or refused to answer any questions. With each ghost he asked Harry got more and more frustrated until finally one took pity on him and told him to seek out Moaning Myrtle. Moaning Myrtle, it turned out, was the ghost that haunted the second floor girls lavatory, the same one that was right next to the scene of the first attack.

The message towards the school was still there when Harry entered the bathroom. He quickly decided that it was the gloomiest bathroom he had ever seen. The occupant was even worse. Myrtle was a squat girl with long hair and thick, pearly glasses. She was not at all very pretty.

"What are you doing here" she demanded, "you're not a girl."

"I…just wanted to ask you a few questions."

"Ha! A likely story. Nobody cares about me, nobody has ever cared. Nobody's interested in miserable, moping, Moaning Myrtle."

She then started to cry loudly. Harry didn't see how she would be of any help and was about to leave when he noticed what she was wearing. It was an old Hogwarts uniform, like the one Voldemort wore when he went to school here. Could she be the student he killed fifty years ago?

"Myrtle? Can I ask you how you died?"

The ghost suddenly stopped crying and a look of pleasure came over her. Harry had a feeling he had asked a very flattering question.

"Ooooh, it was dreadful," she said with relish. "It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then…I died."

"How?"

"No idea," said Myrtle in hushed tones. "I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away…. And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she'd ever laughed at my glasses."

"Where exactly did you see the eyes?"

"Somewhere there," said Myrtle, pointing vaguely toward the sink in front of her toilet. She then floated up and through the ceiling.

Harry walked over and examined the sink. This had to be the spot, the first attack was just outside and Myrtle had died here. The language she heard must have been Parseltongue as Voldemort opened the Chamber. His search was not in vain, carved onto the side of a tap was a little snake. A quick whisper of Parseltongue and the sink sank out of sight, revealing a large pipe. Here was the entrance at last.

Taking a deep breath, Harry jumped down the opening. He was sliding down the pipe with dozens of smaller ones passing by him. It was a long fall and Harry was beginning to rethink jumping down. What would happen at the end? He didn't have to worry, it began to level out and a second later, Harry emerged in a large, dark stone tunnel.

Slime, water, and bones littered the ground and with very little light it was nearly impossible to see. With his arms held out in front of him to feel the way, Harry walked slowly through the tunnel. It was deathly quiet except for the crush of a skull ever couple of minutes. Slowly his eyes adjusted to the dark enough where Harry could see a large, poisonous green snakeskin ahead of him. The skin didn't look fresh but it also didn't look old either. The Basilisk must have shed the skin after the Horcrux released it at the beginning of the year. The dark hid most of the skin but Harry had to guess that the Basilisk was over twenty feet in length.

Leaving the skin behind, Harry continued on. The tunnel ended a few feet later at a solid wall. A pair of stone serpent statues guarded the door, their eyes look very alive with glittering emeralds. At the command of Harry, the serpents parted and the wall opened.

The chamber before him was dimly lit with giant statues of snakes holding up the ceiling. Puddles of water covered the floor and made splashing sounds with every step he took. At the far end of the chamber was a large statue of Slytherin's face, wild and monkey-looking. Harry reached the statue and saw that a large puddle of water separated him from the statue. Something about it stuck Harry as odd but he was unable to place it.

Looking around Harry saw no sign of the Basilisk. Either it was hidden somewhere or the Heir had returned and gotten it for another attack. Harry doubted that the Basilisk was on the attack because he did not run into it or the Heir. Obviously the Heir was keeping a low profile at the moment but Harry had a feeling that he or she would return and attempt another attack soon. When they did, he would be ready to ambush them and take the diary.

As Harry was leaving the Chamber he stopped to gather up some of the shed skin. As Basilisk skin was like dragon hide it could deflect a large majority of spells. The only problem was that the skin was half as effective once it was shed. This was because as a magical creature, most of the immunity came from the Basilisk itself. Once the skin was shed it lost some of its magical potency, however it was still effective enough for Harry to consider making a cloak out of. It may come in handy later.

Harry got started on his cloak right away. He only realized a couple of problem with his idea once he began though. First off, he had no idea how to make a cloak. He worked around that problem by modeling his new cloak after the ones he already had. That brought up a second problem. He was only twelve years old and still growing, the cloak would be too small in a couple of years so he had to make it bigger to fit him in the future. As he didn't know how big he would get, Harry had to guess.

The final problem was the Basilisk skin itself. Although it lost some of its potency, it was still very hard to work with. Harry ended up making several more trips to the Chamber to pick up more skin to work with. He was delayed as he had to make sure he wouldn't be missed and that Myrtle wasn't there. If she saw him coming or going she would report it and Harry would be in big trouble. During the trips he also kept an eye out for the Heir but whoever they were, there was no evidence that they had gone into the Chamber since the last time they opened it.

Indeed, with no attacks since the one on Nearly Headless Nick, the school had grown more hopeful. The Mandrakes that were needed to restore the petrified people were nearing maturity so it was only a matter of time until they were ready. People were starting to take different opinions about why the attacks had stopped. Those that believed Harry responsible thought that with the whole school knowing it was him he thought it was too dangerous to resume the attacks. Others believed it was impossible to reopen the Chamber since the school was alert and suspicious.

Lockhart of course believed it was because of him. Indeed, to celebrate the Chamber's closing, he set up a special morale-booster on Valentine's Day. That morning, the whole school entered the Great Hall for breakfast to discover that it was covered from floor to ceiling in pink with red, white, and pink heart-shaped confetti falling from the ceiling. It was easy to see who was responsible because the perpetrator was wearing lurid pink robes. Harry silently joined the very large number of students who wanted to murder Lockhart that morning.

Of course, Lockhart being Lockhart, it didn't stop there. Somehow he had managed to persuade about a dozen dwarfs to dress up as cupids and go around the school delivering valentines. The teachers didn't enjoy it very much. Snape actually looked like he could poison one dwarf that barged into Potions to deliver one to Draco. It was very amusing to watch your classmates get embarrassed by getting a valentine, until you got one yourself as Harry learned. He received two that day, one from Ginny that was very embarrassing and another from Luna that was more head-scratching than embarrassing. Both thanked him for their friendship and left Harry very red in the face.

When Harry ran into Ginny that evening he didn't feel like talking to her. Malfoy and Tracey had teased him endlessly about his valentines and then Professor Quimble had to go and give the hardest test Harry had ever taken in Muggle Studies. However, Harry learned that Weasleys could be very persistent.

"Harry, I need your help!"

"With what?" he asked bitterly.

Ginny bit her lip and didn't answer. Harry made to leave when she grabbed his arm. "I think Richard may have stolen my diary."

"What makes you think that?"

"I was going to Charms class when I passed him and my brother in the corridor. They were holding a little black book that looked just like my diary. It's been missing for several days now and I don't remember where I put it. I'm afraid they might break the charm on it that prevents people from reading it and they'll spread all my thoughts and secrets throughout the school for all to hear."

Ginny looked very close to tears as she finished and sounded hysterical. Harry agreed but didn't have any idea of what to do. The diary was most likely locked in Richard's trunk in the Gryffindor dorms. Breaking into there was going to be very difficult as the entrance was guarded by a painting. Then, if he did manage to break in, how would he get up to the dorms without being discovered? Ginny was very reluctant to go to a teacher as she had no proof so it was just up to them.

Harry spent the next couple of days thinking it over and even asked Apollo and Artemis. They provided the answer. Since Richard and Ron broke into the Slytherin dorms with Polyjuice Potion, why couldn't he and Ginny to the same? Harry knew that Professor Snape confiscated the Polyjuice Potion Granger made earlier so all he had to do was steal some for him and Ginny. That proved to be the easy part as during the Ravenclaw/Slytherin Quidditch Match Ginny broke into Professor Snape's office to steal two vials full.

After the match, when Ginny showed him the vials, Harry knew that only two steps remained, finding the password and getting something of who they were going to change into. Luck seemed on their side as the Bloody Baron, who was passing at the time, overheard them. Willing to help out a Slytherin in distress, the Baron did some digging and returned to them two days later with the password. With only the bits of the person they wanted to change into left, Harry decided they should use hairs as they were easiest.

Once again Ginny was called upon. Using a Severing Charm, she cut a little bit of hair from Granger and her brother to use while Harry stole a pair of Gryffindor robes. When Ginny returned, Harry was ready to go. Harry took the vial with Ron's hairs while Ginny took Hermione's. With a quick gulp, Ron and Hermione stood where Harry and Ginny were only seconds ago. It was dinner time so everyone was in the Great Hall, the Gryffindor dorms would be empty.

The Fat Lady was surprised to see 'Ron' seeking entrance during dinner but let them in when 'Hermione' said she wanted to grab a book so she could work on homework in the Library after dinner. Once they were inside Ginny ran up the stairs to get her diary while Harry stood guard. Five minutes later she returned, hiding her diary under her robes. The two quickly left and hid for the remainder of the hour they had. When they returned to their normal selves, Ginny gave Harry a hug and a 'thanks' before racing off.

* * *

><p>As they moved into March Harry's learning increased. Although he had gotten a half dozen spells down he found he could move no further in his practices. He then devoted more of his time to his Occlumency shields. With Voldemort's memories helping him, Harry had gotten to the point where he could recognize a Legilimency attack and cover his emotions quite well. Like the other second years, Harry was also asked what electives he wished to take next year. He was required to pick two but the maximum was three, or at least that was the restrictions for the other second years.<p>

As Harry was already taking Muggle Studies that was one less choice for him, the others were Arithmancy, Study of Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, and Divination. Also, due to his adjusted schedule, Harry was actually able to take all electives and, with some prodding from Apollo and Artemis, signed up for them all. Harry was also asked about Muggle Studies by some of his year mates but he had nothing to give them.

Earlier in the week, Professor Quimble came down with a bad case of the flu and now classes were taught by Charity Burbage. Harry liked Professor Burbage as she didn't despise him and actually seemed to like him. Harry seriously hoped that Professor Burbage would take over Muggle Studies classes as she made them fun and taught them a lot more than Professor Quimble did.

Finally, after days of waiting, the moment Harry had been waiting for arrived. As Harry was eating breakfast the morning of the Hufflepuff/Gryffindor match, he heard the Basilisk through the walls. At last, the Heir made his move. Without wasting any time, Harry jumped up from the table and ran for Myrtle's bathroom. Five minutes later he was standing in the Chamber, but it was empty. The Heir and Basilisk were nowhere to be seen. The only difference was that the mouth to Slytherin's statue was open. Harry knew that was where the Basilisk must rest and so decided to wait until the Heir returned.

He didn't have to wait long. Within minutes he heard footsteps and something large slithering along the ground. Wanting to surprise the Heir, Harry hid behind one of the snake columns. Soon, he heard the door open and he could hear the Heir speaking.

_{Stupid Mudblood, I thought for sure she would be in the Library. No matter my pet, no matter, we'll get her next time}_

It was a male speaking and from the way his voice sounded, he was around sixteen years old. Harry stepped around from the column and got the shock of his life.

"Ginny?"

Ginny turned and when she saw Harry, she smiled.

"Ah, the Squib. I guess I shouldn't be surprised to see you down here though I must admit I'm impressed, it took me five long years to discover this Chamber."

When she spoke, it was not with the familiar voice of Ginny but of a deeper, more male voice. A voice Harry knew.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised either Tom, I knew you were possessing someone but I never would've guessed Ginny Weasley."

Ginny's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"That diary" he said, pointing at the object in Ginny's arms. "I know what it is."

"Mm, very good Potter, so you've figured out my experiments. What are you going to do now; I have the Basilisk, the diary, and little Ginny's wand while you have nothing, no magic, nothing." Behind him, the Basilisk hissed menacingly.

Harry smirked, leave it to Tom Riddle to get overconfident. Drawing his wand Harry said, "What makes you think I don't have any magic Tom?"

Tom eyed the wand warily. "You're a squib, you can't have any magic."

"Lumos!" The tip of Harry's wand lit up. Tom took a step back.

"Im-impossible, you're a squib!" He was scared, Harry knew it, but then a smirk took over. "So you've got a wand, no matter, I've still got control of the Basilisk."

"Tell me Tom, what is your plan, what do you hope to gain from petrifying muggle-borns?"

"That _was_ my original plan but after hearing what little Ginny has told me about your brother I changed them. I plan to destroy your brother and then use Ginny's life force to restore myself to full power!"

"Impressive, very impressive. There's just one little problem with your plan, you're dead."

Impossible Squib! I am Lord Voldemort, I can't be dead, my Horcruxes would've seen to that!"

"But you see Tom, that was your problem. In trying to create six Horcruxes you damaged your soul too much. When your Killing Curse rebounded off of my brother and hit you, the strain of trying to keep you soul on this earth was too much for your Horcruxes. The part of your soul still with you was destroyed and you died while your Horcruxes remained."

The fear returned. "How…how do you know this?"

Harry tapped his scar. "I misspoke. While most of your soul was destroyed, a small portion remained. It now resides in me and all its powers and memories are mine to command."

"So that's how you are able to speak Parseltongue, I wondered. And what do you mean, _memories_?"

"Exactly what I said, bits your life I've been able to view because of the soul fragment in me. It's also granted me some of your magic, that's how I'm able to cast some spells."

"Very impressive" Tom said quietly. He seemed to be in deep thought. "Well now what, I obviously can't destroy you or I'd be destroying a part of myself."

"That's actually what I'm after. Surrender yourself to me, allow the bit of your soul that resides in your diary inside me. With it, I can grow in power and hopefully reclaim my magic from my brother."

"And why should I do that? What's stopping me from taking control of your body and refashion myself anew?"

"Because you don't have the strength. You're only part of a soul while I have a full soul and another part. As a part of a soul you wouldn't have very much power while I would have a greater amount."

"Hmm, you speak well but I'm still not convinced. What exactly is your plan."

"Exactly what I told you. I plan to gather all of Voldemort Horcruxes together and make them a part of myself. Using their power and memories, I would take my magic back from my brother."

"Very well, I'll join you. Do you know the location of any of my Horcruxes?"

"One, a diadem that you got from the Grey Lady. It's here in Hogwarts but I didn't want to move it until I felt I could take its soul piece. I suspect its memories will give me the location of some of the other Horcruxes."

"Very well, but I don't think my memories would be able to help you as I was never interested in draining magic. Maybe something from Slytherin's personal library would be able to help."

"Slytherin has a library?"

"Just behind the Basilisk's holding cell, inside the statue's mouth. It's really just a small collection of books and scrolls that Slytherin either wrote or found. I was never really interested in them but you may find something useful. By the way, how do you propose we get rid of this girl, she's already suspicious about my diary."

"She's a friend of mine so I don't want to hurt her. I do have an idea, but first I want to see this library."

* * *

><p><strong>In case you couldn't tell, I used the Chamber from the movie instead of the one in the books as it worked better for the story. A little science fact here; the fact that the Basilisk (at fifty feet in length) is called 'the King of Serpents" is even more impressive due to the discovery of Titanaboa, a snake around forty-eight feet in length. It was discovered in Columbia and live more than sixty million years ago.<strong>


	14. The Chamber's Secrets

**Sorry for the long wait, I've been a little busy this summer. I'll try and get another chapter posted as soon as possible but I've a new job and my other major story to work on first. Read and review.**

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><p><em><span>The Chamber's Secrets<span>_

Like Tom said, the library wasn't much. It really was a small study located in the back of the mouth of Slytherin's statue. It was decorated in much the same way the Heir Dorms were, with a lot of green and silver. A single bookcase stood on one wall while two cabinets were on the opposite wall. A desk sat in the back with an old lantern for reading. The bookcase held a handful of very old books while the cabinets were full of sealed scrolls.

Harry grabbed a handful of each and put them on the desk to look at. Out of the corner of his eye Harry could see Tom, still possessing Ginny, standing off to the side with his diary clutched tightly in his arms, making Ginny look like an innocent school girl. It was very weird to look at.

The scrolls, Harry noticed, were full of notes and spells Slytherin was researching or found interesting. One even talked a bit about Horcruxes, which is where Voldemort got the idea to use them, but even Slytherin despised them and didn't mention them further. A handful of books were actually Slytherin's journals, full of his lessons learned under an apprenticeship, his misadventures as a child, teen, and adult, and of the early years of Hogwarts. Here, Harry discovered the reason why Slytherin hated muggles and muggle-borns.

During Slytherin's time, witches and wizards were hunted by muggles following the formation of the Christian religion in Europe. As the years past, it became more and more dangerous for the Hogwarts staff to recruit muggle-born students, for both the staff and potential students. Everyone assumed the danger was outside the castle but no one ever imagined that there was danger inside.

One ambitious muggle-born believed that his magic came from the muggle God and that it was his destiny to destroy all 'Devil worshiping witches and wizards'. He planned to destroy the magical world and insert himself as a follower of God and bring about a glorious age of Christianity. He gathered a few like-minded individuals to his cause but they were quickly stopped by the Founders. Ironically, the muggle-born was killed by muggles who thought he was a devil worshipper.

Following this incident and the continued persecution of wizards, Slytherin demanded that the Founders stop taking in muggle-borns. The other Founders disagreed and wouldn't listen to Slytherins arguments brought on by fear of a 'single incident caused by a foolish student'. Unable to persuade the others, Slytherin created the Chamber and placed the Basilisk there incase another muggle-born tried to follow in the footsteps of the Believer.

The entrees stopped there and Harry assumed that it was shortly after this that Slytherin was banished from the castle. He obviously planned to return to continue his work but never managed it. Harry felt a small amount of pity for Slytherin as his hatred of muggle-borns came from his fear of them. Fear does terrible things to a mind, Harry knew that. He grabbed another handful of books, scrolls, and journals, shrank them with some difficulty and left the library. He knew he would return some time later to collect more but time was running out, he needed to get back to the school before someone realized that he and Ginny were missing.

With the Basilisk under his command now, Harry allowed the great snake to remain inside the main chamber. There was a secret passage that led to the Forbidden Forest that the Basilisk could use if it got hungry. Harry and Tom then made their way out of the Chamber and to Myrtle's bathroom.

Harry's plan was simple; have Tom use Ginny's wand and his magic to leave several bruises and cuts on her body and robes. Then, Tom would use a memory charm on Ginny, making her forget about her experiences with the Chamber and about him. It went off without a hitch and Harry took the diary. He then ran back to the Slytherin dorms where, once in the safety of the Heir Dorms, used the magic of the diary. Using the diary's magic, Harry drained it of the soul fragment and placed it in himself.

Immediately he felt the effects. He felt stronger, more powerful. Testing his new power, Harry discovered that the diary increased his magical power. Also like expected, the diary gave Harry more of Voldemort's memories. The memories filled in the blanks of everything before Riddle's fifth year when he opened the Chamber and made the diary Horcrux. It also contained everything Riddle knew about the Chamber. His new memories also included the ones made this year about its possession of Ginny. As the diary also drained Ginny of some of her life force and power, Harry got those too.

Once he made sure the diary was hidden in his trunk, Harry returned to the bathroom for the next part of his plan. Ginny was still lying on the floor where he and Tom left her. He made a show of kneeling down to check her pulse incase Myrtle was watching. She was. There was a scream and Harry looked up. Moaning Myrtle was starring wide-eyed at Harry and Ginny.

"Myrtle, quick, get a professor!"

She didn't need telling twice. Myrtle floated out of the bathroom at high speed. Once she was gone Harry slowly picked the girl up and carried her out of the bathroom. He had taken one step when someone called out to him. It was Professor McGonagall.

"Mr. Potter, what's going on? What happened to Miss Weasley?"

"I don't know Professor, I just saw Professor Lockhart emerge from the bathroom. I was curious as to why he was in a girl's bathroom so I went inside. I found Ginny just lying on the ground. Moaning Myrtle saw me and I asked her to get a professor."

"Very well Mr. Potter. I'll take Miss Weasley to the Hospital Wing, you come too."

McGonagall took Ginny from Harry's arms and carried her down the hall, Harry following close behind her. Once Ginny was in a bed and Madam Pomfrey was checking her over, McGonagall left. Harry sat in a nearby chair, playing the part of the concerned friend. A few minutes later and Professor McGonagall returned with Professors Dumbledore and Snape and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Mrs. Weasley rushed for her daughter while the professors turned towards Harry.

"All right Mr. Potter, please explain everything you saw" asked Dumbledore.

Harry repeated the story he made up with Riddle. He was walking along the hall when he saw Professor Lockhart emerge from the girl's bathroom. He didn't see Harry and was acting funny. Curious, Harry entered the bathroom to find Ginny unconscious. Myrtle then found them and alerted McGonagall. Throughout the story Mrs. Weasley was crying and holding Ginny's hand.

"Well Poppy," said Dumbledore, turning to the school's nurse "what's the diagnosis?"

"Miss Weasley has several bruises and cuts all over her body. Her robes protected her upper body from what I believe to be the worst of it. She's also had her memory modified but I don't know of what. Beyond that there's no sign of any worse injuries."

"Dumbledore, I want Lockhart arrested!" Mr. Weasley said, furious.

"Of course, I'll alert the Aurors immediately and I'll have Gilderoy questioned. I assume you, your wife, and Mr. Potter will stay here?"

The professors then left, leaving Harry alone with the Weasleys. Harry felt uncomfortable being alone with the Weasley parents after what they did last summer and what they said to Ginny. He made to leave but Mr. Weasley stood in front of him.

"I want to thank-you for what you did for my daughter."

"She's my friend, I'd do anything for her" Harry snapped back. Mrs. Weasley gave a loud sob and Mr. Weasley looked grave.

"I know you don't think the best of us because of what my wife put in that Howler at the beginning of the year" here Mrs. Weasley gave another loud sob and whispered 'I'm sorry' over and over while stroking Ginny's hand, "but please try to understand, we love our daughter very much. If you're her friend…I guess we can accept that."

Mr. Weasley offered his hand but Harry didn't take it. They should be apologizing to their daughter for what they did, not him. He sat back down next to Ginny's bed and waited.

It was a long, quite half hour before Professor Dumbledore returned. He looked very upset and Harry feared for a second that his plan had been shot to pieces. The Weasleys stood and walked over to the headmaster.

"Well?"

"Me and a group of Aurors questioned Mr. Lockhart under Veritaserum and he denied any involvement in your daughter's attack but it did expose a few troubling things. It turns out that Mr. Lockhart's 'achievements' were really performed by other witches and wizards. He tracked them down, got the full story from them, then used a Memory Charm to make them forget. He has been arrested for those crimes and the use of Memory Charms had provided the Aurors what they believe is enough evidence to arrest him for your daughter's attack as well. As we speak he's being carted off to the Ministry for trial."

Harry was amazed by what he was hearing. The plan had been to frame Lockhart for the attack and get the fool out of the school. He had no idea that he had actually done all those crimes. He had doubts that someone would believe him but now no one would believe Lockhart. The fool was finished, he'd be lucky to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban. The Weasley children came in at that moment and began to talk with their parents. Ginny meanwhile stirred.

"Uh…Harry?"

"Hey, glad to see you're away."

She took one look around and her eyes got wide. "Oh no! Was I attacked?"

"Not by the Chamber no, but apparently Lockhart did something to you and then modified your memories. He's been arrested so he can't harm you anymore."

Ginny then burst into tears and grabbed onto Harry like her life depended on it. He held her close until someone cleared their throat. All of the Weasleys were standing behind him and Ron and the twins weren't looking to happy.

"Mum!"

"Ginny! My baby!"

Mrs. Weasley then rushed back to her daughter's side. The two cried together while the other Weasleys crowded around Ginny's bed. Harry chose that moment to leave. He took a detour to the Room of Requirement to pick-up the diadem before returning to the Slytherin dorms. Once again Harry performed the ritual to remove the soul fragment and put it in himself. This Horcrux contained most of Voldemort's later years at Hogwarts and a few of his adventures after.

It also gave Harry the location of two more Horcruxes, the Gaunt Family Ring at the Gaunt Shack and Hufflepuff's Cup in the Lestrange Vault in Gringotts. The first he could get once he found a way to move around freely but the second would be near impossible to get. Only one Horcrux, Slytherin's Locket, was at an unknown location. It's location was probably stored somewhere within the other Horcruxes but it mattered little at this point.

Harry's goal was complete. With the power offered from his scar, Voldemort's diary, Ravenclaw's Diadem, and the little power he got from Ginny, Harry was now considered a low-powered wizard. With the magic he now had at his command he could easily practice all kinds of magic. The spells and knowledge the Horcruxes provided would be of great use in the future.

* * *

><p>Harry had chosen an interesting time to find the Chamber. Riddle's last attack had resulted in a Ravenclaw Prefect being petrified in the Library. It happened when she saw the Basilisk in her mirror as she was checking her make-up. Harry's 'alibi' almost absolved him of suspicion but not everyone believed he wasn't responsible.<p>

The next morning everyone woke up to find out that the groundskeeper Hagrid had been arrested for the attacks and Dumbledore temporarily suspended. Of course, all anyone could talk about was Lockhart. Many people, mostly the female population, were completely shocked by his actions and a large majority of the students were questioned and examined to see if he did anything to them. If it could happen to Ginny Weasley, it could've happened to anyone. So far nothing had been found but that didn't stop the rumor mill.

With Lockhart gone Defense Against the Dark Arts had to be taught by all the teachers. Students suddenly became more interested in the class as nobody knew who would be teaching their class that time and what they would teach. The class was most productive when it was canceled and the students were required to do independent studies.

With the latest attack and Dumbledore gone, Hogwarts was practically overflowing with fear. Only two people didn't have any fear at all, Harry and Draco. Draco was being his usual self, strutting about the castle like he owned the place and bragging about how his father was the one to remove Dumbledore from the school. Harry of course was the only one who knew where the Chamber was and who was behind it and, as such, the only one who knew that the danger had passed.

He also kept the Horcrux remains hidden in his trunk. Although the items were no longer Horcruxes and dangerous, Harry believed it was a good idea to keep them hidden. Ravenclaw's Diadem was supposed to be missing and its magical properties were still useful. Voldemort's memories also revealed that Richard knew about the Diary, or at least part of it, and that it was best for it to disappear.

Ginny's and Penelope Clearwater's attack was the last eventful thing that happened the rest of the year. Months went by without an attack and the school slowly let its guard down. The professors kept alert, in case the Heir made another attack just before the school year ended but nothing happened. The Basilisk's victims were successfully restored though they could give no information about what attacked them, they had no memories.

There was no winner for the Quidditch Cup this year as the matches had been canceled after the last attack yet Slytherin won the House Cup easily thanks to Harry. All the Slytherins had a party the last night of term to celebrate that as well as the worst defeat Gryffindor had ever had.

Before he boarded the Express the next morning, Harry snuck back down to the Chamber to retrieve a set of scrolls from Slytherin's library. There, he had discovered an unusual find that interested Apollo and Artemis as well. Apparently, in the last years of his life, Slytherin attempted to make a written language for Parseltongue. Slytherin was interested in combining the powerful form of Parsel Magic, magic using Parseltongue, and Runic Magic. The whole thing was an experiment and not entirely finished but Harry decided to finish it himself.

The train ride was fairly quiet. Ginny and Luna rode with Harry. Luna read a copy of _The Quibbler_ the entire trip while Artemis lay in her lap. Apollo curled up next to Ginny, who was writing in her new diary. Even with Voldemort's powerful memory charm Ginny had spent too much time with his Diary so it was fairly difficult for her to forget about it. She remembered nothing about its true power, only that she had a diary but it was lost somewhere within Hogwarts. Harry replaced it with the one she currently had as a present.

When they arrived at King's Cross, Rose met him a ways away from their father. Harry recognized the blonde woman standing next to him as the one that accompanied him to the Gryffindor/Slytherin match this year.

"That's our new stepmother," Rose explained. "She's some American witch named Amy Williams. She met Father in Diagon Alley last year and he's been sneaking off to see her ever since. That's where he was at the beginning of the year.

"She moved in not long after term started and she and Father were married not long after. She's bloody annoying, trying to make me a 'proper little witch' and won't leave me alone. I'm never calling her Mum, ever."

The new Mrs. Potter was worse than Rose explained. She had a high pitched voice and was incredibly vain. She simply adored being the new mother to the Boy-Who-Lived. She tolerated Rose but was absolutely horrible to Harry, criticizing him, and claiming he wasn't even worthy to carry her bags. Harry hated her immediately.

Thankfully, Harry was able to mostly ignore her by staying up in his room. With his various projects to keep him busy Harry barely emerged from his room, even to eat meals. Apollo and Artemis hated the new arrangements. Amy was deathly afraid of snakes and though Harry longed to reveal his friends to her, he knew that there would be big trouble if they were discovered.

Thankfully, this had the benefit of allowing Harry to work on the Parseltongue Dictionary. Instead of individual letters, in Parseltongue, a rune could be either a syllable or an entire word. The trick was figuring out how the tongue moved. It was very difficult work as the three could never really agree on how to write a certain rune, thought thankfully most of the hardest work was already done by Slytherin.

Harry also started practicing Parsel Magic. Harry found that with Parsel Magic, he just had to wave his wand and say a word in Parseltongue and the spell usually worked. The limitations were that only certain words had an effect and not all English words had a Parseltongue equal. Harry found that some of the most powerful spells were words a snake would use all the time; like fire/heat, light, and water.

Rose sometimes spent some time with Harry. It was to get away from Amy as much of what Rose did she didn't agree with, like riding a broom. Rose's time wasn't wasted, she read and reread nearly every scroll of Harry's notes as at last she would be going to Hogwarts at the end of summer.

Harry got a handful of letters from his friends. Luna wrote once a week and talked endlessly about the creatures she and her dad looked for. Tracey asked to borrow some of Harry's notes, especially his Muggle Studies as she had signed up for that class. She also said that Daphne asked about him every once and a while.

Ginny didn't send a whole lot of letters as she didn't have her own owl and her three older brothers didn't like Harry that much. A couple days before his birthday Harry received an excited letter from her about how her father won seven hundred gallons from the Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw. She, her parents, and three of her brothers were going to Egypt for a month. Due to his punishment from last year, Ron wasn't allowed to go as was still stuff with his Aunt Muriel, much to Ginny's amusement.

The day before Harry's birthday, Professor Dumbledore arrived at Potter Manor. He did not have good news.

"James, I'm sorry to tell you that there has been a break-out from Azkaban Prison."

"WHAT? But how, that place is supposed to be inescapable."

"I know, the Ministry is still investigating but that's not the problem. The escapee is Sirius."

James Potter froze and Harry felt a jolt. Sirius Black, Harry's godfather, the man who betrayed his family to Voldemort, and killed twelve muggles and James and Remus's good friend Peter Pettigrew had escaped.

"His cell was found empty early this morning. I was alerted right away by Minister Fudge, who has also alerted the muggle Prime Minister. However, the problem is that for the past couple of months he has been muttering yours, Richard's, and Harry's names in his sleep. The Minister believes that Black may try and kill you all in some mad attempt to bring Voldemort back to life.

"While I believe that is a little farfetched, we can never be too sure. In any case, it's best to better be safe than sorry. The Minister wants to assign Aurors to protect you here and while you leave. Unfortunately his has also asked to post Dementors around Hogwarts and I have reluctantly agreed. For yours and your family's sake, I suggest you leave the house as little as possible and don't allow Harry or Richard to visit Hogsmeade this year."

"What?" came Richard's loud voice.

"I'm sorry Richard but it's for your own protection. As soon as Black is recaptured you can visit the village, I promise."

"Don't worry Dumbledore, I promise we'll take every precaution. Black ruined my family twelve years ago, I want let him harm them again."

With this his pulled Amy into a tight hug and gripped Richard's shoulder, completely ignoring Harry and Rose. Neither Amy nor Richard noticed but Harry, Rose, and Dumbledore did. Dumbledore thought about saying something but let it go. James just probably grabbed those two because they were closer and he did only have two arms.

"Dumbledore, before you go, you should know that Black is an Animagus. He can turn into a large black dog."

"Thank-you James, that is really helpful information, I'll be sure to let the Ministry know right away."

The news about Blacks escape actually made Harry happy. This was because he knew that James and Amy wouldn't have signed his Hogsmeade permission slip and now Richard couldn't go as well. He just had to find a way to trick James into signing whenever Black was captured.

The Aurors arrived the next day and were stationed around the house. James also updated the wards just in case. Rose and Richard were no longer allowed outside to fly, something which upset Richard greatly as he was now bored. Without Ron to hang around with and no flying, Harry's brother had little to do around the house.

The only time they left the house was the day after their Hogwarts letters arrived. The family of five plus Remus flooed to the Leaky Cauldron where they were met by a dozen Aurors. Most of them stayed with Richard and James but one, a young cadet named Tonks who was working on her third year of training, refused to let Rose and Harry out of her sight when they tried to sneak away. In the end, they were forced to allow her and Remus to accompany them.

Their first stop was Gringotts. Harry was worried about Tonks and Remus finding out about his new vault but thankfully the goblins only allowed those who controlled the vault to discuss the contents and visit. Outsiders weren't allowed without permission from the vault holder. Remus took Rose to take some gold out of her trust vault while Harry deposited thousands of Galleons worth of gold and a few gold items he made into his new vault. After grabbing and sack full of Galleons, the group left the bank.

The next stop was Madam Malkin's for robes for both Harry and Rose. Both kids had a laugh when Tonks supplied some interesting comments towards Remus while he was examining a pair of robes. Next were the Potions supplies. Harry refilled his ingredients while Rose got hers and Remus fetched a cauldron and set of phials.

As they were coming out of the trunk shop, they saw a large crowd hanging outside Quality Quidditch Supplies. At first Harry thought that they were watching Richard, but then he heard a young boy mention a broom. Turns out, they were all interested in a new broomstick that had just come out last week, the Firebolt.

Then, James, Richard, and Amy walked out of the store with a brand new Firebolt. Richard proudly showed it off and pointed out some of its finer details. The crowd ohhed, ahhed, and clapped in all the right places while James and Amy just basked in the attention they were receiving.

Annoyed by his brother's actions, Harry pulled Rose into Flourish and Blotts. Remus helped Rose gather her books while Harry shopped on his own. He needed an entire set for all the elective classes, including Muggle Studies. This was going to be an interesting year as Harry had to take the Muggle Studies O.W.L. at the end of the year.

Once everything was purchased, Rose practically ran for Ollivanders. She entered before Harry, Remus, and Tonks could catch up and when they entered, they found her bouncing with excitement at trying wands. Ollivander had already given her a wand to try so the three sat back to wait. Seven minutes and twenty wands later, Rose was the proud owner of a ten inch, dragon heartstring, willow wand. She was even more excited about her wand's connection to their mother Lily, who had also had a willow wand.

James and Richard didn't appear to be finished yet so the group of four sat outside Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor and ate some cones Remus bought them. Five minutes later, Richard and the others arrived and the Aurors escorted the Potters back to the Leaky Cauldron where they quickly flooed to their manor.


	15. Astoria

_Astoria_

The night before September 1st, Harry barely slept at all. This was mainly to due to the fact that Rose kept popping into his room every ten minutes to nervously ask an out-of-the-blue question about Hogwarts. Finally, at three in the morning, Harry accepted that he wouldn't get any sleep that night and joined Rose in waiting for the rest of the family to wake up.

Hours later, the two siblings were riding with Remus and a couple of Aurors in a Ministry own car. James, Amy, and Richard were riding in another just ahead of them. They were leaving later than they normally would because it was believed if they arrived just before the Hogwarts Express left, Black wouldn't have time to do anything if he was waiting at the station.

Within a minute of arriving at Kings Cross, the Potters and Remus were boarded and a few seconds later, the Express pulled out. Remus had claimed his own compartment and went straight to sleep as two nights ago was the full moon. Richard quickly found his two friends and joined Remus, enjoying the fact that they were friends with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

Harry found an empty compartment for himself and Rose and filed in. Rose quickly took a seat, pulled out her brand new Charms book, and started reading. Harry meanwhile reviewed his notes on Parseltongue with Artemis looking over his shoulder. They were hoping to finally develop a rune for 'snake' and 'human'.

A few minutes into the train ride their compartment was opened by a young girl with brown hair and bright blue eyes. Harry blinked. He was staring at a girl who looked so much like Daphne Greengrass she had to be her sister. This had to be Astoria, the 'annoying little sister' Daphne always talked about.

"Excuse me," Astoria asked nervously, "but can I sit here?" She pointed to an open seat next to Rose.

Rose herself literally jumped at the chance to make a new friend. Hopping off of her seat, she grabbed Astoria's hand and pulled her down onto the seat.

"Of course you can join us, feel free to sit anywhere you like. I'm Rose by-the-way and this is my brother Harry. Are you a first year too, I'm a first year. What house do you want to get in? I like them all but I'm hoping for either Slytherin or Ravenclaw. Harry is in Slytherin so it'll be good to know someone there but I really like learning so maybe I'll get in Ravenclaw. What about you, do you have any older siblings? What house are they in?"

Harry didn't know what emotion to display. On one hand the way Rose was acting was just too funny and Astoria's face just added to it. On the other hand, Harry had never seen Rose act so friendly to anyone and was practically bombarding Astoria with questions. He finally decided to settle on funny and burst out laughing.

Harry's laughter caused Rose to blush and Astoria to turn towards him. As she did, she saw Artemis lying on top of Harry's seat and her eyes got wide. Immediately Harry realized that Astoria knew nothing about Artemis and Apollo. She could possible expose them outside of Slytherin House.

"I know who you are; you're that Squib my sister and father were talking about!"

Harry scowled. "I am _NO_ Squib. I'm actually surprised that your sister hasn't told you about _how_ I lost my magic."

He could tell Astoria was curious. She leaned forward with an interested look on her face. "How?"

"Our idiot brother" said Rose nastily.

"She's right," Harry said as Astoria turned towards Rose. "The night Voldemort vanished, Richard's magic was depleted and mine was given to him instead. I've been labeled a Squib ever since."

"So, how are you able to attend Hogwarts?"

"Because I was born a wizard and was only made a Squib due to some ritual, my name was still on the roster. Dumbledore knew about the ritual and allowed me to attend."

"But then, why are you here, I heard Dumbledore got suspended?"

"He was. He told our father and 'Uncle' Remus about it earlier when he was requiting Remus for the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts. After the last incident which caused Dumbledore to get suspended nothing else happened. The Governors took this as a sign that the danger had passed and ended the suspension. Besides, it was only temporary, I doubt he would've been gone longer than a few months."

With that, Harry turned back to his notes and ignored the two girls. He and Artemis resumed their debate and continue it for some time. Meanwhile, Rose and Astoria talked amongst themselves. Sometimes he could hear pieces of their conversation. Hours went by with the only interesting thing that happened was Harry finishing a few runes.

Rain had begun to fall by the time something happened. Luna stopped by the say hello to Harry and his sister, followed by Ginny and a couple of her new Slytherin friends. Harry was happy to see both girls and find out that they were well. Apollo, who was sleeping under Harry's seat, enjoyed the attention Ginny's friend Rachel and Luna gave him.

Daphne stopped by a little later to check on her sister. When she arrived, she pulled Astoria outside the compartment. Harry and Rose could hear the argument by just staying in their seats.

"What are you doing here Astoria, and with him?"

"Making friends Daphne, what do you think?"

"You know what Father said about him."

"Yeah, but I also remember what you said about him. I decided to check him out and make my own decisions."

"Father won't be pleased."

"So what else is new? He doesn't like _anything_ we do, even if it's something he agrees with. Besides, I'm not befriending him, just his sister."

There was a long pause following this in which Harry thought the two sisters were fuming and/or had left. That thought ended when he heard their argument continuing, but quieter than earlier. The voices were muffled and when they got louder, overlapped, so Harry couldn't hear anything that they said.

Harry was content to let the sisters fight themselves and pulled out his Divination textbook to study. Rose however was curious and snuck over to hear better. She cracked the door open a bit so she could hear before retreating back to her seat. Her effort was worthless however as the argument was ending.

"Fine! Do whatever you want, but don't say I didn't warn you."

They heard clicks sound out in the hall and disappear that Harry identified as Daphne's high-heels. The door opened all the way and Astoria reappeared, taking her seat with a smile as if the argument hadn't happened. The two Potters stared at her but she ignored them and tried to start a discussion with Rose about the Weird Sisters.

The rain continued and increased in such a degree that Rose and Astoria started to complain about having to row across the Lake. Harry just smirked unseen at the girls. Suddenly, the train came to a stop without warning, throwing the three to the floor. Before they could so much as say 'ow', the lamps throughout the train went out.

Carefully, Harry helped Rose and Astoria up and onto their seats. Then, Harry opened the door to their compartment and looked out. From what he could see in the very little light available, a few people were doing the same.

"Harry," came Rose's voice, "I'm scared. What's going on?"

"I don't know Rose" Harry said, pulling his head back inside the compartment.

"Do you think something happened to the train?" asked Astoria.

"No idea."

"What do we do Harry?"

Harry moved over to the two girls and sat next to them. "We stay here and wait. Someone will be around shortly to check on us."

He then laid back and put his arm around Rose. She leaned towards him and grabbed on as tightly as she could, shaking with fear. To Harry's surprise Astoria did the same, looking for comfort. The three remained that way, huddled together in the dark, for what felt like hours.

Suddenly, an intense cold fell over them. The girls shuttered and clung tighter to Harry, who wasn't feeling too well all of a sudden. The cold feeling increased and seemed to go right inside him, into his heart and soul. A tall, cloaked figure then appeared in the doorway. He knew what this was, having heard about them.

The dementor took a long, rattled breath and Harry felt dizzy. His head spun and darkness covered his eyes. The cold suffocated him, making him lose all feeling. He felt like he was falling and heard a distant scream, like Rose's. He tried to reach for her but he couldn't find her, his arms were too heavy. There was more screaming and then voices.

_"…there is an ancient ritual that we could use that would transfer Harry's magic into Richard's. We haven't performed this ritual in hundreds of years because in order to work, the subjects need to be younger than two, really close in age, and related. Most families aren't willing to risk one child's magic and life to save the other child's. The Ministry has also heavily restricted this ritual as it is seen as dark."_

_"Is Voldemort gone for good Dumbledore?"_

_"No James, Voldemort isn't truly gone just yet. He will come back, and when he does, only Richard will be able to defeat him."_

_"Do the ritual, the Ministry won't care because this is Richard..."_

"Harry? Harry, Harry are you alright?"

Harry opened his eyes. He was lying on the floor of the compartment. Rose was on her knees over him, her eyes full of tears. Astoria sat behind her, her arms wrapped around her legs while she looked down fearfully at Harry. The voice belonged to Remus. He was standing in the door, wand held high with its tip alight.

"Yeah," Harry said pulling himself up off the floor. "I heard it, I heard about the night I lost my magic."

Remus, looking a little nervous, put his free hand inside his robes and pull out three bars of chocolate and handed them out. "Eat this, it will help. I need to finish checking on the rest of the train but if you two need me Harry and Rose, you can find me further up the train."

He then left, closing the door behind him. Harry slowly sat back in his own seat and Rose climbed up next to him.

You O.K. Harry?"

"I don't know Rose. It was Dumbledore, Dumbledore told our parents to do the ritual."

Rose said nothing but closed her eyes while allowing Harry to hold her. Astoria watched the two for a second or two before sliding off of her seat and joining them.

"You know" Astoria said, "my father always told me no never accept chocolate from a stranger, but in this case I'll make an exception."

Rose giggle softly as Astoria popped a piece in her mouth. Even Harry let out a small smile at the girl's actions and took a bite out of his own chocolate bar, instantly enjoying the warmth. There was a commotion outside and the door was flung open to reveal a worried Daphne.

"Daphne!" Astoria exclaimed. The girl jumped off her seat and ran towards her sister. The two girls held each other for a few seconds before Daphne pulled her little sister away, leaving the Potters by-themselves.

The rest of the trip was passed by in silence and when it came time to separate on the platform Rose was most reluctant to do so. He could see Astoria and Daphne hugging good-bye on another area of the platform and pointed them out to Rose. She scowled at the older girl but rushed off to her new friend. Harry meanwhile rushed towards the Thestral pulled carriages to get out of the rain as quickly as possible.

He jumped into the first carriage he saw, barely sparing the Thestral a glance, and was surprised to find it only occupied by Luna. She smiled at Harry, who returned the greeting, and then turned to stare dreamily out at the rain. Harry shook his robes in an attempt to get dry before remembering about Parsel-magic. With a quick glance at Luna to make sure she wasn't watching, Harry pulled out his hidden wand and tried to whisper _{heat}_ in Parseltongue as quietly as possible. Luna showed no indication if she heard the spell or not. The spell warmed his robes and slightly dried them.

The carriage took them up a path and through a high gate guarded by two dementors. Feeling the cold from them, Harry popped a Chocolate Frog he had pocketed into his mouth. It helped but Harry still felt weak and desperately wanted to get to the Great Hall for the Welcoming Feast. When the carriage stopped in front of the castle, Harry and Luna jumped out and ran for the main doors, completely ignoring Richard and his friends.

"Potter! Potter, a word please! Not you Richard, you're brother. And you Granger, I would like a word with you as well."

Harry was confused as Professor McGonagall called him and Hermione Granger over.

"There's no need to look so worried, I just wanted a word in my office. Move along you two" she said to Richard and Ron.

The two third years followed the Deputy Headmistress up several flights of stairs to her office where they sat in front of her desk. McGonagall sat down and waited a couple of seconds before turning towards Harry."

"Professor Lupin sent word ahead that you had taken ill on the train Potter as a result of the dementors."

Granger turned to glance at him and Harry turned red. It became worse when the school nurse entered the office and began checking his forehead.

"I'm fine, I don't need anything."

Madam Pomfrey tutted and continued to examine him before Harry said for the tenth time that he was fine and didn't need to go to the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey scowled at him but finally left.

"Well, now that that's out of the way, I would like to talk to you two about your course schedules. You both put down that you'd like to take all the elective courses but that is quiet impossible. However, Potter, you are a special case. With you not taking a couple of the normal courses and already taking Muggle Studies I guess we could squeeze you into the other electives, _if_ you still wanted to take them?"

"Yes."

"Very well, I'll inform the Headmaster and Professor Snape. You may have to take one or two courses with another house instead of your own but if you are determined I'm sure that will be allowed. As for you Miss Granger, you are taking all the normal courses yet you've signed up for all the electives. As you know, you can only take three."

"Please, Professor McGonagall, isn't there any way I can take them all, please?"

"Miss Granger, there was one way but your actions last year with the Polyjuice Potion incident put a damper in that. Only with a good record in academics and with the rules could I have allowed you use a Time-Turner to take multiple classes at once but I cannot allow that now. I'm sorry but you'll have to drop at least two courses."

Granger looked close to tears at McGonagall's announcement and Harry started to feel sorry for her when he remembered what she did to not be allowed the use of a Time-Turner.

"B-but I don't…don't know what courses to give u-up, I want to take them all."

"Miss Granger, why don't you drop Muggle Studies. As a muggle-born the class is entirely useless to you."

"But I want to learn about muggles from the wizard's point-of-view."

Five minutes later, a frustrated Harry, an annoyed McGonagall, and a crying Hermione exited McGonagall's office. The professor had finally managed to persuade Hermione to drop Muggle Studies and Divination, which she believed to be pointless. They arrived in time for Professor Dumbledore to stand and give his traditional welcome speech, which included why and how he was back.

As Harry walked to an open seat at the Slytherin table he saw Draco Malfoy scowl heavily. Farther down, Astoria was talking to a pair of twin girls her own age. Rose however, was not at the Slytherin table. A quick look revealed her at the Ravenclaw table talking to Luna.

Harry then listened as Dumbledore explained about Sirius Black and the dementors. A quick glance at Richard showed that he wasn't paying attention to Dumbledore's speech about how the dementors weren't fooled by tricks or disguises. No doubt the two were already planning on how to sneak Richard out of the castle.

"On a happier note, I'm pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year. First, Professor Remus Lupin, who has kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

There was light clapping as only a few students welcomed their new professor, Harry and Rose among them.

"Second, I am sorry to announce that Professor Kettleburn has retired in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that our very own Rubeus Hagrid has agreed to take on the post of Care of Magical Creatures teacher in addition to his gatekeeping duties."

There was less clapping for Hagrid than Remus. Harry himself was surprised that the gamekeeper was back. Dumbledore off suspension was one thing, but the person believed to have opened the Chamber the first time coming back only after all the attacks stopped just after he was taken away. Someone in the Ministry had to be extremely stupid. Of course, Harry knew the truth, but no one else did.

After that, the Feast started. Harry still wasn't feeling well from the effects of the dementors so he grabbed a little food and ate slowly. As he ate, he looked around the Hall, watching the occupants, mainly his sister and Astoria. The two Ravenclaws had stopped their discussion for now while Astoria and her new friends had resumed theirs. There was something about those two girls.

"Hey, Millicent" Harry said to the girl next to him.

Millicent Bulstorde looked up from her potatoes and glared at him.

"What is it Potter?"

"Who are those twins talking to Astoria Greengrass down there?"

"That's Hestia and Flora Carrow, two new Slytherins. Now will you leave me alone?"

The Carrow twins; Harry wondered if they were related to the two Carrows who served Voldemort. They certainly didn't share any familial resemblance to them. However, it might be a good idea to keep an eye on them anyway.

Immediately after getting back to the common room, Harry plopped in front of the fire with a book to start researching. A handful of people were still awake, mostly upperclassmen as the first years were exploring.

"Hey, Potter!" Draco Malfoy marched up to him, Crabbe and Goyle behind him. "What are you doing?"

"Reading Malfoy, or can't you see."

"Very funny Potter, I meant what are you doing out here?"

"Again, reading. Now if you don't mind, I would like to read my Care of Magical Creatures book in peace."

Malfoy scowled and walked away.

"Why in the world are you ready that?" asked Nott.

"You heard Dumbledore. 'Professor' Hagrid is teaching us this year; how much do you think we'll learn from him? I'm reading the book now because I don't think he'll be a very good teacher."

"That's a good point. Might be a good idea for us to do them same."

"Just one problem," said Daphne. She held up her own book which was struggling in her hands, trying to break the belt that was holding its mouth shut. "How in the world do we open these things?"

"You mean you haven't figured it out?" Harry laughed.

"How did you open yours?" asked Tracey.

"It's the _Monster_ Book of Monsters."

"We know, but how did you open it?"

"The name gives the hint. Here." He grabbed Daphne's book and put it on his lap. "You just pet it. Just stroke the spine a bit and it'll go docile."

Harry did just as he said and Daphne's book stopped moving. Then he pulled off the belt, while everyone took a couple steps back. With the belt off, the book fell open and Harry held it out for Daphne to take. The brunette carefully stepped forward and took the book shaking.

After she held the book for a few seconds and turn a page or two the others relaxed. Tracey pulled out her book and did the same thing as Harry. Just like Daphne's, her book laid still after it was stroked.

"Not bad Potter" Daphne said, still turning pages, "maybe we'll keep you around."

As Daphne walked away, Harry saw a smirk appear on Astoria's face.

"You know, that's not a bad idea Daphne" she said, her voice barely loud enough for the emptying common room to hear. "His arm muscles _are_ quite nice." She then gave her sister a wink.

Harry blushed as the few people left in the common room started muttering and look back and forth between him and the Greengrass sisters. Daphne herself was mortified.

"When in the world did you feel his arms?"

"When the dementors boarded the train and it came to a stop we all fell off of our seats. I landed onto of him. Now that I think of it, laying on him was pretty comfy."

Harry blushed even more as Astoria giggled and ran off. Deciding that he had stayed up long enough, Harry entered his personal dorm.

The next morning Harry's first class was Muggle Studies. Much to Harry's pleasure, Professor Burbage was now the official Muggle Studies teacher. She started the class off by giving them Harry's first O.W.L. lecture.

"This June you all will be taking your O.W.L.s. This is an important time for you as your results will determine your future. Many of you won't be continuing this class next year but that doesn't mean you can slack off. Even if your career doesn't involve muggles an O.W.L. in this class will help you overall. Even more so because as adults you will most likely be dealing with muggles at least once. Now, to start off, we will review electricity and how the muggles use it."

Following Muggle Studies Harry went to History of Magic, which was just a boring as ever. Of course, Harry did enjoy the entertainment Tracey providing by tickling a sleeping Daphne with her quill and eventually causing her spill her ink bottle all over the front of her robes. He didn't enjoy the screech of horror Daphne let out after class however, nor the stinging hex she sent him and Tracey for laughing at her.

Daphne didn't reappear until after lunch, having changed her robes, as they were walking outside for their first Care of Magical Creatures lesson. They were headed towards Hagrid's hut when Harry saw that they were having class with the Gryffindors. These pleased Draco as Harry could hear him mutter excitedly to his cohorts.

"Perfect, now we just have to find a way to ruin the oaf's lesson. Maybe if we get him mad enough he'll attack us and then we can get him fired. Or maybe Potter will and he'll get detention. Maybe if we're lucky he'll have to miss tryouts, I hear he has to re-tryout for the Quidditch team.

"I got it! We'll fake injury and blame it all on whatever beast we're shown. It's perfect; only and little work and maximum results."

"Be careful Malfoy" Harry called, "I'd wait to see what creature we're shown first, you don't want to have a fake injury turn into a real one."

"Gather around everyone, gather around. I've got a great lesson for yah today, a real treat. Just follow me."

Hagrid led them past his hut and into the forest. A couple of students stopped unwilling to enter but they were forced to continue. In a couple of minutes they were at the edge of the forest, in a small clearing. The midday sun shone through the trees, making the place look beautiful and peaceful. The class sat on a couple of fallen trees and rocks around the clearing.

"Now, first things first" Hagrid said as he turned around, "you need to open you're books."

"Um, Hagrid?" said Hermione. "How exactly are we supposed to do that?"

"Er…"

Harry smirked at the entire Gryffindor class pulled out their books, all bound shut like the Slytherins' last night.

"Hasn't…hasn't anyone be able to open their books?"

"We have Professor" Harry shouted, holding up his book. Every Slytherin held up their opened books, enjoying the looks the Gryffindors were giving them.

"Very…er, very good, ten points to Slytherin."

Harry silently laughed at the looks of horror Richard and Ron were giving him. After Hagrid showed the Gryffindors how to open them, with some teasing from a couple of Slytherins, he went off to fetch the magical creature they were supposed to study.

How did you figure out how to open the books Squib!"

A furious pair of red-heads were now standing in front of him.

"Oh, it was very easy Richard. Something only a _competent wizard_ could figure out."

The Slytherins laughed as Richard's face turned red.

"Oh yeah, 'competent'. I'm sure a 'competent wizard' faints at the sight of a dementor."

The Slytherins stopped laughing and the Gryffindors snickered. Harry's eyes narrowed.

"How did you find out about that?"

"Our little sister was talking about it with that Slytherin whore. I just happened to hear."

Harry was angry, at both his siblings, but that was nothing compared to Daphne. A spell shot by him and missed Richard by and inch as Daphne came marching up to him.

"Don't you _dare_ call my sister a whore you little bastard."

Her eyes flashed dangerously and she raised her wand to perform another spell when Hagrid returned with a small herd of hippogriffs. Daphne backed off and stood next to Harry as Richard turned towards the creatures. Hagrid patted each of them on the hind-quarters, urging them forward and around the clearing.

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily. "Beautiful creatures, aren't they?"

Harry could see a couple of people turning the pages in their books to the chapter on hippogriffs.

"Now, the first thing you need to know about hippogriffs is that they're proud creatures, easily offended. You do not want to insult one 'cause it might just be the last thing you do."

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry notice Malfoy suddenly smirk. It was probably a good idea to keep an eye on him for the rest of the lesson.

"You always wait for the hippogriff to make the first move as its polite, you see. Walk toward him and bow. If he bows back you're allowed to touch him. If not, back away quickly because those talons hurt."

Much of the class was now eyeing the talons and those closest to the hippogriffs backed away.

"Now, who wants to go first?"

The entire class backed up this time, too afraid to get close. One of the hippogriffs eyed Harry and he felt something connecting him to the creature. Deciding to take a chance, Harry stepped forward. He heard someone, it sounded like a girl, make a noise behind him. Turning around, Harry saw Daphne take a step back, her eyes wide.

"Er, very good Mr. Potter." Hagrid's voice sounded forced, like he wanted someone else to walk forward. Following his gaze, Harry saw that the professor was looking towards Richard. "Let's see how you do with Fleetwing."

He moved towards a bronze colored one near the front but the grey one that eyed Harry moved forward. The chain around its neck prevented it from moving towards the class but it struggled against it. A couple girls screamed and the class back away even further.

"Whoa Beaky, whoa. What's gotten into yeh?"

Hagrid move to restrain the hippogriff but he barely touched it when the chain broke. The hippogriff slipped free of Hagrid's arms and trotted over to Harry. It stopped two feet in front of him and just stared. Harry didn't know what to do and the professor certainly wasn't doing anything, just standing by the rest of the herd.

The two just stood in the empty clearing, with dozens of eyes watching them while their own eyes were locked on each other. Harry remembered reading about hippogriffs during the summer and that you had to maintain eye contain at all times.

Suddenly, a voice told him to bow so he did. As he was straightening up he saw the hippogriff bow back at him. Shocked, Harry didn't move but Hagrid and the hippogriff did. The professor moved closer and Beaky moved his head forward, towards Harry's arm. Harry froze again but he needn't have worried, the hippogriff nudged his arm forcing him to pat its beak.

"Very, um, very well done Mr. Potter. And to you Buckbeak. Ten points to Slytherin. Who else wants a go?"

About half the class moved forward to the hippogriffs, most of them Gryffindors. Richard sent Harry a glare as he joined his friends with Fleetwing. Harry however didn't care, he had earned twenty points for Slytherin from Hagrid and made Richard look bad. It all added up to be a good afternoon in his book.

Tracey and Daphne rushed towards him. Both girls had nail marks on their arms and face and Daphne looked a little pale. Tracey started talking about how Harry looked with Buckbeak and how scared she was while Daphne just remained silent.

Harry wasn't paying any attention to them. Instead he was focused on Draco Malfoy, who was with Buckbeak. He stepped away from the girls and moved towards Malfoy. Tracey stopped talking and watched him. Harry was almost at Malfoy when it happened.

"This is very easy," he said. "It must have been in a simple little Squib could do it. I bet you're not dangerous at all you great ugly brute."

"Malfoy, look out!"

Buckbeak gave a loud screech and rose up on his hind legs and brought his talons down. The moment he knew what Malfoy was going to say, Harry moved. He got to Malfoy in time to push him out of the way, but too late to move himself. The talons came down and Harry felt a white hot pain across his back. As he fell, he heard a high pitched scream and then his world turned black.


	16. adoption

**Author's Message**

**I know many of you are upset that I've abandoned this story. I am to as I had some good ideas I wanted to use, but sadly it was not meant to be. However, the author _TheFlowerOfTheCourt_ has asked to adopt this story. They have renamed it _Harry Potter: A Squib's Path to Revenge. _There are changes, like Harry's twin being a girl, but the plot line should be the same. Be sure and check it out.**


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